Burns, William

Full Name: 
Burns, William

Researcher Profile

Research Scientist
Affiliation: 
Decision Research
Phone: 
+1 541 485 2400
Office Address: 
United States
Research Expertise: 
statistics, decision science and models, marketing, psychology of deterence, risk communication
Bio: 
Bill Burns completed his Ph.D. at the University of Oregon in Decision Science and subsequently held positions as a professor at the University of Iowa and UC Davis before moving to San Diego. He is currently a research scientist at Decision Research (Eugene, OR), an institute that focuses on judgment, decision making and risk perception, and is also associated with the National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE at USC) where he has been named a CREATE Fellow and contributes to the risk assessment, risk perception and economic impact research. He is also a part-time faculty member at California State University San Marcos, a minority serving institution, where he teaches statistics and has been a faculty advisor on over sixty student-consulting projects. His work has been funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the National Science Foundation. Research and interviews related to the public’s response to the different crises have appeared in academic journals such as Management Science, Risk Analysis and Journal of Applied Communication Research and media such as The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post and National Public Radio. He has been the guest editor for a special issue in Risk Analysis entitled “Risk Perception and Behaviors: Anticipating and Responding to Crises”. He has also given keynote addresses at the International Crisis and Risk Communication Conference and the IEEE Intelligence Security Informatics Annual Conference. Recently he spent three summers working in Washington D.C. at the TSA on a Department of Homeland Security University Faculty Fellowship. Work with the TSA has focused on modeling adaptive threats to commercial aviation. More generally, investigations over the near future focus on: 1) understanding the social psychology behind enhancing public resilience and demotivating terrorists and 2) developing a new generation of research focused on a dynamic rather than a static portrayal of risk perception, risk-related behavior, and policy preference.
Education: 
DegreeYearUniversity
Ph.D., Decision Science
1990
University of Oregon
M.S., Statistics
1986
Oregon State University
M.S. Interdisciplinary Studies: Psychology and Sociology
1987
Southern Oregon University
B.S. Psychology
1980
Southern Oregon University
Professional Experience: 
Organization/CompanyStarting YearTo Present
U. S. Department of Homeland Security
2013
2014
Decision Research
2007
to Present
National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis for Terrorism Events (CREATE)
2006
to Present
San Diego State University
1999
2000
University of California, Davis
1997
1998
University of Iowa
1990
1996
California State University, San Marcos
1999
to Present

Presentations

Title Project
Perceived Risk, Fear and Avoidance Behavior: The Economic Value of Risk Communication Dynamic Aviation Risk Management System (DARMS): A Proof of Concept Study Examining the Role of Multi-Attribute Utility
Commercial Airline Security: Public Perceptions and Communication Regarding TSA’s Expedited Screening Procedures Dynamic Aviation Risk Management System (DARMS): A Proof of Concept Study Examining the Role of Multi-Attribute Utility
The Role of Deterrence: Commercial Aviation Security Dynamic Aviation Risk Management System (DARMS): A Proof of Concept Study Examining the Role of Multi-Attribute Utility
Modeling the Uncertainty Associated with Commercial Airline Flight Risk Dynamic Aviation Risk Management System (DARMS): A Proof of Concept Study Examining the Role of Multi-Attribute Utility
Perceived Risk, Fear and Avoidance Behavior: The Economic Value of Risk Communication Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences and Examining the Potential of Using Twitter Data to Study Public Response to Terrorist Threats
Commercial Airline Security: Public Perceptions and Communication Regarding TSA’s Expedited Screening Procedures Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences and Examining the Potential of Using Twitter Data to Study Public Response to Terrorist Threats
The Role of Deterrence: Commercial Aviation Security Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences and Examining the Potential of Using Twitter Data to Study Public Response to Terrorist Threats
Modeling the Uncertainty Associated with Commercial Airline Flight Risk Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences and Examining the Potential of Using Twitter Data to Study Public Response to Terrorist Threats
Advancing Our Understanding of Risk-Related Behavior: The Role of System Dynamics and Longitudinal Modeling Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Public Response to 3 Crises: A Longitudinal Look Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Perceived Risk, Fear and Avoidance Behavior for Terrorism and Natural Disasters Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Examining Public Response to Natural Disasters and Terrorism: The Role of Systems and Longitudinal Modeling Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Public Response to Recent Terrorists Attempts in the United States: A Longitudinal Look at Perceived Risk and Support for Different Security Measure Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Public Response to Recent Crises: A Longitudinal Look at Fear, Risk-Related Behaviors and Support for Different Policy Measures Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Public Response in the U.S. to the Japanese Crisis: Reactions to the Earthquake and Tsunami Versus the Nuclear Acciden Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Resilience in the Face of Terrorism: Risk Communication as Inoculation Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
The Psychology of Risk: Implications for Managing the Impact from Disasters Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Public response to Boston attacks Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Public response to terrorism: Risk communication as a means of preserving confidence in security measures Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Public response to disasters: Current approaches to exploring perceived risk, economic impacts and the mitigating role of risk communication Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences
Advancing Our Understanding of Risk-Related Behavior: The Role of System Dynamics and Longitudinal Modeling PNNL INC Project
Public Response to 3 Crises: A Longitudinal Look PNNL INC Project
Perceived Risk, Fear and Avoidance Behavior for Terrorism and Natural Disasters PNNL INC Project
Examining Public Response to Natural Disasters and Terrorism: The Role of Systems and Longitudinal Modeling PNNL INC Project
Public response to the terrorist attack on Boston Modeling the Dynamics of Risk Perception and Fear: Examining Amplifying Mechanisms and Their Consequences