Risk, Uncertainty, and Message Convergence: Toward a Theory of Financial Communication
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
9-22-2017
Department
Communication Studies
School
Communication
Abstract
Risk is inherent in financial markets, and the accompanying uncertainty must be managed and navigated by stakeholders making financial decisions. Despite pervasive scholarship positioning stakeholders as rational actors when managing risks, we argue that people become more quasi‐logical when making decisions. Additionally, we argue that risks are cogenerated, and that current theoretical frameworks do not fully explore this notion. Specifically, we discuss the social amplification of risk framework (SARF), which focuses on ways individuals amplify or attenuate risk perceptions through social processes. However, we argue that SARF could be complemented by the addition of the message convergence framework, which focuses on ways that arguments interact in the minds of stakeholders. The chapter concludes with recommendations in message design for financial communication practitioners and for decision‐makers who navigate economic risks.
Publication Title
The Handbook of Financial Communication and Investor Relations
First Page
33
Last Page
43
Recommended Citation
Anthony, K. E.,
Venette, S. J.
(2017). Risk, Uncertainty, and Message Convergence: Toward a Theory of Financial Communication. The Handbook of Financial Communication and Investor Relations, 33-43.
Available at: https://aquila.usm.edu/fac_pubs/16323
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