Journal of Radiation Protection and Research

The Korean Association for Radiation Protection (대한방사선방어학회)
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Intent to Use a Smartphone Application for Radiation Monitoring in Correlation with Anxiety about Exposure to Radiation, Recognition of Risks, and Attitudes toward the Use of Radiation

  • Han, Eunkyoung (Department of Mass Communication and Journalism, Sungkyunkwan University) ;
  • Rott, Carsten (Department of Physics, Sungkyunkwan University) ;
  • Hong, Seung-Woo (Department of Physics, Sungkyunkwan University)
  • Received : 2017.03.30
  • Accepted : 2017.06.26
  • Published : 2017.12.31
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Abstract

Background: Radiation is used in a variety of areas, but it also poses potential risks. Although radiation is often used with great effectiveness in many applications, people perceive potential risks associated with radiation and feel anxious about the possibility of radiation exposure. Various methods of measuring radiation doses have been developed, but there is no way for the general public to measure their doses with ease. Currently, many people use smartphones, which provide information about the location of an individual phone through network connections. If a smartphone application could be developed for measuring radiation dosage, it would be a very effective way to measure individuals' radiation doses. Thus, we conducted a survey study to assess the social acceptance of such a technology by the general public and their intent to use that technology to measure radiation doses, as well as to investigate whether such an intention is correlated with anxiety and attitudes toward the use of radiation. Materials and Methods: A nationwide online survey was conducted among 355 Koreans who were 20 years old or older. Results and Discussion: Significant differences were found between the genders in attitudes, perceptions of radiation risk, and fears of exposure to radiation. However, a significant difference according to age was observed only in the intent to use a smartphone dose measurement application. Attitudes towards the use of radiation exerted a negative effect on radiation risk perception and exposure anxiety, whereas attitudes towards the use of radiation, risk perception, and anxiety about exposure were found to have a positive impact on the intent to use a smartphone application for dose measurements. Conclusion: A survey-based study was conducted to investigate how the general public perceives radiation and to examine the acceptability of a smartphone application as a personal dose monitoring device. If such an application is developed, it could be used not only to monitor an individual's dose, but also to contribute to radiation safety information infrastructure by mapping radiation in different areas, which could be utilized as a useful basis for radiation research.

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