Call for Contributions: New Policy Ultra Briefs (PUBs) series on early warnings

An initiative of the German Society for Psychology (DGPs)

As extreme weather events become more frequent and severe — including heatwaves, heavy rainfall and flash floods, prolonged droughts, low-water periods, and severe storms — the demand for scientifically robust and readily accessible evidence to inform political decision-making is increasing. 

Early warning systems play a key role in this context: they are designed to identify risks at an early stage and communicate them in a comprehensible manner, initiate effective protective measures, and support decision-making processes in crises. Their effectiveness depends not only on predictive accuracy but also on system design, communication strategies, and how warnings are perceived, interpreted, and acted upon by diverse population groups.

Behavioural sciences provide key evidence in this regard: they examine where and how people perceive and interpret warnings, which factors influence the implementation of (explicitly) recommended protective measures and behaviour in general, which communication strategies are effective, and how systems can be designed to reliably reach different population groups. The purpose of this PUB series is to synthesise these findings in a concise, policy-oriented format that enables decision-makers to access reliable behavioural science evidence quickly and efficiently. 

For the upcoming call, we are therefore looking for contribution ideas that concisely summarise current evidence on early warning systems for heat, floods, and other climate- and crisis-related risks and derive implications for political decisions.

Aim of the Policy Ultra Briefs

The Policy Ultra Briefs summarise scientific findings from psychology and related behavioural sciences in a maximum of two pages. They are designed to provide policy-makers with clear, accessible, and evidence-based insights relevant to decision-making processes. There is a particular need for clear, easily understandable, and technically sound overviews in the areas of risk communication, disaster preparedness, and early warning systems. Scientific findings should therefore be made usable in practice in order to improve the effectiveness of communication, prevention and resilience strategies in the context of growing climate risks.