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.