Meteorological conditions and behavioral spatial cognition: A critical review for decision-making amid environmental risk

For example, lower economic status individuals may perceive a lower risk when confronted with a particular situation relative to those with higher economic status and be more apt to take higher risks if the potential loss of income was perceived as a worse outcome for themselves individually. Additionally, previous research found age and other demographic-related differences (e.g., gender) in how people remember information when presented in a map-like versus first-person/ground-level perspective.

Younger adults use a coordinate processing strategy while older adults use a categorical processing strategy. Both groups had a similar level of accuracy in recall; however, older adults were less accurate when recalling information from first-person perspective layouts. This suggests individual differences in how information presented on maps is processed (e.g., forecasts, hazardous weather alerts) compared to personal perception of the weather when it is experienced.

Perceptual differences could result in increased public exposure to dangerous conditions otherwise believed, or perceived, to be safe.