AbstractWith increased public awareness of environmental hazards brought about by accidents such as those at Seveso and Bhopal, the need for the expertise of the social scientists has been recognised in the field of risk communication. Their role can be seen as either providing advice on how to shape people's opinions or of providing increased understanding of the functioning of human systems and their interactions with natural systents. The latter case implies a joint effort between the natural and the social scientists: this is the approach favoured by the European Union.