FACTORS IN CHOICE
In choosing among adjustments, at least four classes of factors are found to be associated with the decision in a number of areas.First, prior experience with the hazard is commonly linked with the choice made. The degree of severity of the risk, and the lengthof exposure to its consequences, are often related to the type andnumber of adjustments selected. Second, the material wealth of the individuals concerned is usu-ally associated with the extent to which they take risks. Wealthier peasants are more likely to experiment with a variety of measures against flood or drought, and they have both the necessary pecu-niary support and the security of a carry-over to the following year.Third, personality baits have been found to figure in certain choices, paråcularly in the face of severe, intensive events. Baumann and Sims suggest a direct relation between a sense of inner con&ol and response to tornado warnings (1972), as well as a choice of hurricane adjustments (1974). Somewhat similar factors seem to be at work in the choice of radical use-location adjustmentsin Brazil.Fourth, the perceived role of the individual in a social group may be influenüal. Most field observations give support to a condition—someåmes regarded as a dilemma—that prevails in situations of sodal change. VVhile people seem enmeshed in an ineråa that discourages any departure from the existing set of ad-justments to the hazard, they still have the capability of very rapid adopåon of new adjustments when circumstances are favorable. City officials can be quick to take advantage of technological inno-vationS such as cloud-seeding, even though its effectiveness is largely unproven; traditional Kenya farmers can shift in a few years to drought-resistant a flood-warning system can be enforcedwith alacrity in a Japanese village.