I have an electric pressure cooker, Nesco brand, and I love it. In fact, if you are worried about safety, I would suggest going with an electric model. Just make sure that it can get up to 15 PSI (the measurement of how much pressure the unit can get up to inside). Some electric models won't get this high and as a result require longer cooking times. The Nesco one does.
You get a couple of extra benefits from using an electric model. The unit will automatically shut off on it's own and go into a warming mode. So if you happen to step away for a moment and lose track of time, you don't have to worry about overheating your pressure cooker too much. Also, the temperature itself is controlled electronically so you don't need to worry about if you have your burner too high or too low. You will get much more consistent cooking results from it, and when you are pressure cooking, every minute counts. One minute over or under could mean a dish is under or overcooked, especially with veggies. The electric models are also usually multi purpose, meaning you can steam, slow cook or use them like a standard pot on a burner to brown and saute stuff. Though, to be honest I would never bother using mine to steam something, and I rarely use it as a burner.
The regular stove top models have some advantages too though. They are less bulky than an electric model. A 6 quart electric model is about the size of an 8 quart stove top model. They are often stainless steel, so they are more durable for cleaning, as opposed to the non-stick coatings on the electric models. They are also lighter to pick up and store away. And when you need to brown stuff such as meats, before pressure cooking or slow cooking them, you can get the pot up to a much higher temperature on the stove than you can with the burner mode on the electric models. You can also take them off the heat immediately, unlike electric models, which just turn off and gradually cool down. The main down side with them though is you need to time them yourself with your own timer, and you cannot leave the kitchen when cooking with them. As safe as they are, if you are bringing a pan up to pressure and don't lower the heat back down when the nozzle starts whistling, that could spell trouble. Heaven forbid maybe your pet accidentally runs out the door and you have to take off after them while your pressure cooker is running on the stove - stuff like that makes me nervous about using a stove top model, At least I can relax knowing the electric one will shut off on its own.
There is still a possibility of food "exploding" after you open the lid too, sometimes packets of steam will build up at the bottom of the pot under the food, then release all of a sudden. A similar thing will happen with liquids heated in the microwave, sometimes a bowl or cup of water will "blow up" when you take it out of the microwave and expose it to room temperature air. I'm not sure what causes this, but I think stirring the items real well before cooking is suppose to help prevent this. Not to freak you out though, it rarely ever happened to me. I think it was only one time when I was cooking a thick pasta sauce in my pressure cooker. Just try and step back a bit when you first take the lid off, and give it a gentle stir before looking face down into the pot.
