{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,10]],"date-time":"2026-02-10T20:02:57Z","timestamp":1770753777717,"version":"3.50.0"},"reference-count":27,"publisher":"Emerald","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2019,2,4]],"date-time":"2019-02-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1549238400000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/www.emerald.com\/insight\/site-policies"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["K"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2019,2,4]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title content-type=\"abstract-subheading\">Purpose<\/jats:title><jats:p>All technologies have intended and unintended consequences, both favorable and unfavorable. Because the risks from implementing a technology may outweigh its rewards, the precautionary principle, illustrated by the maxim \u201cbetter safe than sorry\u201d, often is applied. Yet, the precautionary principle itself may have unintended consequences. This paper aims to discuss the precautionary principle and unintended consequences and present a model for analyzing the resulting implications.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title content-type=\"abstract-subheading\">Design\/methodology\/approach<\/jats:title><jats:p>A deficiency in applying the precautionary principle often is forgoing a quantitative analysis. In this paper, the authors apply decision analysis and decision analytic methodologies. Specifically, they present a decision model which can be used when analyzing the consequences of using the precautionary principle. The methodology incorporates decision-makers\u2019 attitude in the determination of the preferred decision policy. The authors illustrate the methodology by determining a decision policy regarding the application of the precautionary principle in a situation with potential unintended consequences.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title content-type=\"abstract-subheading\">Findings<\/jats:title><jats:p>The findings indicate that a generic decision model structure for assessing the use of the precautionary principle, as illustrated in a decision tree, can be used when implementing a new technology. The results of the analysis indicate that a decision-maker\u2019s attitude plays an important role in determining a preferred decision policy for this dynamic decision situation.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title content-type=\"abstract-subheading\">Originality\/value<\/jats:title><jats:p>This research breaks new ground by proposing a decision analytic methodology where quantitative analysis can be applied to address problems where technologies are implemented with unintended consequences and where the precautionary principle is applied.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1108\/k-01-2018-0050","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2018,8,7]],"date-time":"2018-08-07T05:07:48Z","timestamp":1533618468000},"page":"265-286","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":14,"title":["The precautionary principle and unintended consequences"],"prefix":"10.1108","volume":"48","author":[{"given":"Holmes E.","family":"Miller","sequence":"first","affiliation":[]},{"given":"Kurt J.","family":"Engemann","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[]}],"member":"140","reference":[{"issue":"8","key":"key2020092506504124500_ref001","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1145","DOI":"10.1287\/mnsc.1060.0527","article-title":"On precautionary policies","volume":"52","year":"2006","journal-title":"Management Science"},{"key":"key2020092506504124500_ref002","volume-title":"The Innovator\u2019s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail","year":"1997"},{"issue":"3","key":"key2020092506504124500_ref003","first-page":"322","article-title":"Using the language of summarizing statistics in dynamic decisions","volume":"3","year":"2003","journal-title":"International Journal of Technology, Policy and Management"},{"issue":"4","key":"key2020092506504124500_ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"353","DOI":"10.1504\/IJTPM.2004.006617","article-title":"Decision making with attitudinal based expected values","volume":"4","year":"2004","journal-title":"International Journal of Technology, Policy and Management"},{"issue":"4","key":"key2020092506504124500_ref005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"388","DOI":"10.1504\/IJTPM.2005.008637","article-title":"Disaster management of information resources using fuzzy and attitudinal modeling","volume":"5","year":"2005","journal-title":"International Journal of Technology, Policy and Management"},{"issue":"3","key":"key2020092506504124500_ref006","article-title":"Risk attitude chain: safety climate, risk attitude and risk decisions","volume":"7","year":"2017","journal-title":"International Journal of Business Continuity and Risk Management"},{"key":"key2020092506504124500_ref007","unstructured":"European Environment Agency (2001), Late Lessons from Early Warnings: The Precautionary Principle 1896-2000."},{"issue":"3","key":"key2020092506504124500_ref008","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"381","DOI":"10.1002\/sres.2330","article-title":"Unintended environmental consequences of improvement actions: a qualitative analysis of systems\u2019 structure and behavior","volume":"33","year":"2016","journal-title":"Systems Research and Behavioral Science Syst Science"},{"key":"key2020092506504124500_ref009","unstructured":"Lomborg, B. 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