Likelihood of adoption of arsenic-mitigation technologies under perceived risks to health, income, and social discrimination to arsenic contamination

This study aims to assess the likelihood of adoption of arsenic-mitigation technologies under perceived risks in an Indian rural region that confronts severe and chronic groundwater arsenic contamination. A total of 340 households were surveyed in three arsenic-affected villages of Bihar, India. The average population perceives greater health risks and economic risks to arsenic-contaminated groundwater than social discrimination risk, therefore, are willing to adopt arsenic-mitigation technologies. Caste, education, income, sanitation practices, people’s prioritization of socio-environmental problems, arsenic awareness, and social capital, were the strongest predictors of perceived economic risk. The same variables as above (with the exception of income, sanitation practices, and social capital) with additional factors like agricultural landholdings, and social trust, were the strongest predictors of perceived health risks. However, in the case of perceived social discrimination risk, the respondents’ agricultural landholdings, people’s prioritization of social problems, arsenic awareness, and social capital, were the strongest predictors.