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Awarness of Aresenic Severity in People´s Behavior Essay

Decent Essays

One study performed in Sreenagar, Bangladesh, showed that awareness of the arsenic severity might not affect people’s behavior as much as may be expected (Inauen, 2013). The psychological study concluded that social factors, such as having full knowledge of contamination levels and risks, were the most significant influence in determining what water source people used (Inauen, 2013).

b. Show data that supports the reduction in cases of arscenosis for people who have switched to green tubewells

VI. Arguments Against

a. Support ineffectiveness of communication/education at changing behavior
There is little substantial research supporting the role education has on improving health in developing areas (Tarozzi, 2005).

Attempts at using …show more content…

Since females are primarily responsible for water gathering, walking distance and social barriers for women are factors in the success of an alternative source (Inauen, 2013).

A study by___ found that one third of households who were drinking arsenic-contaminated water and had access to alternative, safe options did not use them (Inauen, 2013). This finding has two major implications: one, that changing behavior is more complex than just making people aware of a problem, and two, that many of the surveys done by governmental and non-governmental agencies over the years may have considerably underestimated the amount of people who are at risk of developing arsenicosis (Inauen, 2013).

b. Show that some Bangladeshis do not have access to better water therefore cannot switch

The World Bank–sponsored Bangladesh Arsenic Mitigation Water Supply Project (BAMWSP) well-testing campaign checked over 5-million wells. According to van Geen et al. (2002), this campaign probably caused many people to switch from their contaminated well to a nearby “green” well. Admittedly, however, such campaigns do not provide solutions for households who are simply unable to switch sources. If all of the tubewells in a given area are “red”, then these geographical constraints may be too difficult to overcome (Graziano, 2005).

The geographical distribution of arsenic across Bangladesh varies sharply- a “green” tubewell might be located adjacent to a “red” one.

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