The Index of Harm : A Measure for Comparing Occupational Risk Across Industries

Kenneth A. Solomon, Stanley Charles Abraham

ResearchPublished 1979

Explores the implications and potential uses of an index-of-harm methodology for comparing occupational risk across industries. A preliminary comparison showed that at current average levels of radiation exposure and based on the apparently low International Commission of Radiological Protection (ICRP) estimates of the dose-harm relationship, the radiological "industry" appears to be less risky than mining; agriculture, forestry, and fisheries; construction; transportation; and manufacturing. The calculations were based on the risk effects of six occupational harms--three nonradiological (death, accidental injury, and disease or illness) and three radiological (radiation-induced somatic effects, genetic effects, and somatic effects on the fetus or embryo of pregnant women)--and on five different assumptions about the relative importance or degree of aversion of the six harms. The index of harm is a potentially useful tool in quantifying the benefits of reducing occupational risk.

Document Details

  • Copyright: RAND Corporation
  • Availability: Web-Only
  • Year: 1979
  • Paperback Pages: 49
  • Paperback ISBN/EAN: 978-0-8330-0126-9
  • Document Number: R-2409-RC

Citation

RAND Style Manual
Solomon, Kenneth A. and Stanley Charles Abraham, The Index of Harm : A Measure for Comparing Occupational Risk Across Industries, RAND Corporation, R-2409-RC, 1979. As of September 24, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/reports/R2409.html
Chicago Manual of Style
Solomon, Kenneth A. and Stanley Charles Abraham, The Index of Harm : A Measure for Comparing Occupational Risk Across Industries. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1979. https://www.rand.org/pubs/reports/R2409.html.
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