Community Risk Perception and Social Response to Air Pollution in Industrial Zones of Peshawar, Pakistan

Abstract

This study examines community risk perception and social response to air pollution in industrial zones of Peshawar, Pakistan. Although reported PM2.5 evidence shows serious air-pollution exposure in Peshawar, less attention has been given to how residents socially interpret this environmental risk and whether such perception leads to behavioural or policy support. The study adopted quantitative cross-sectional survey design and collected data from two hundred respondents through a structured questionnaire. Awareness of air pollution, perceived poor air quality, community risk perception, and behaviour/policy support were measured with eighteen items on a five-point Likert scale. Secondary PM2.5 evidence was used to describe the environmental context of air-pollution exposure in Peshawar, while statistical analysis focused on respondent-level social constructs. Descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s alpha, Pearson correlation and multiple regression were used for data analysis in SPSS. The findings showed that perceived poor air quality and awareness were significantly associated with community risk perception. Regression results further indicated that perceived poor air quality was the strongest predictor of risk perception, while awareness was the strongest predictor of behaviour and policy support. The study concludes that air pollution in industrial Peshawar is not only an environmental condition but also a socially interpreted risk shaped by lived experience, awareness, and perceived institutional response. The moderate level of behaviour/policy support suggests a perception-action gap that requires stronger public communication, community participation, and regulatory action.