4.2. Over-representation and risk
Much of the work on risk in safety studies seems to stem from accepted and established procedures taken from the field of epidemiology as practiced in medical and health related studies. From epidemiology a logic is adopted which seems to be the basis for the use of exposure and the calculation of risk (Hauer, 1995a). It is the search for over-representation in various populations under study that lies at the basis of this approach. Searching for over-representation seems to suggest the following line of thought and action:
[deviation-from-normal] leads to [clue-to-cause] leads to [clue-toremedy]
Many classical epidemiological-medical studies have successfully taken this approach and in some cases led to major achievements.