Psychologists' study on how to communicate on the theme of nuclear waste

In 1998, EDF organized a study on how to communicate on the theme of nuclear waste to help understand why communication on this theme seems to be stuck. This study has involved many psychotherapists, psychologists and physicians from different schools of thought. Afterwards a team of internal and external consultants continued the work in 1999 and explored 'the hidden aspects' of the communication that is made on nuclear waste. What are those aspects? What has to be taken into account in such a communication on a theme that is 'absorbing', 'strong', 'invisible'? How to build a more efficient and relevant communication towards the public and the ecologists? How to build a communication which opens up a dialogue and mutual understanding? The first part of this qualitative study has been devoted to interviewing the psychotherapists in a non directive way on what are the representations and beliefs about waste in general, then about nuclear waste. The second part was centered on their reactions to a pamphlet 'Nuclear waste in questions' and a video document (of a presentation of a paper given on the subject). This presentation describes the findings of this study