Sensitivity Analysis in Risk Assessment

Sensitivity Analysis Methods in Risk Assessment

This section reviews and advances methods for sensitivity analysis, which helps identify the most influential inputs in complex models. The contributions include developing best practices for applying these methods to probabilistic models used for microbial food safety and human exposure simulation. This research enhances the transparency and credibility of risk assessments by providing a clear, quantitative understanding of which factors are most important in determining risk outcomes.

Illustrative papers (selected examples): 

Frey, H.C., and S.R. Patil, “Identification and Review of Sensitivity Analysis Methods,” Risk Analysis, 22(3):553-578 (June 2002).

Mokhtari, A., and H.C. Frey, “Recommended Practice Regarding Selection of Sensitivity Analysis Methods Applied to Microbial Food Safety Process Risk Models,” Human and Ecological Risk Assessment, 11(3):591-605 (2005).

Mokhtari, A., H.C. Frey, and J. Zheng, “Evaluation and recommendation of sensitivity analysis methods for application to Stochastic Human Exposure and Dose Simulation (SHEDS) models,” Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, 16(6):491-506 (Nov 2006).

Mokhtari, A., and H.C. Frey, “Evaluation of Sampling-Based Methods for Sensitivity Analysis: Case Study for the E. coli Food Safety Process Risk Model,” Human and Ecological Risk Assessment, 12(6):1128-1152 (Dec 2006).