Summary
Summary KRM 320(B) Risk Society: Study unit 1
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A complete summary of the extent that the risk society principle is applicable to South Africa.
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THE RISK SOCIETY: ITS APPLICABILITY IN THE SA CONTEXT 1. INTRODUCTION
The world is perceived to be a dangerous place that we need to protect ourselves from
Risk society – manner in which society organises itself in response to risk
Ex. taking part in methods of protection & taking out insurance, calculating possible future risks & reporting
concerns to media
Beck, Giddens & various others attempted to explain the risk society – with differences & similarities
These authors argued that with the rise of industrial society we exposed ourselves to new risks
different from natural risks & risks that have always been part of human life (terrorism, nuclear reactor
explosions, oil spills)
Middle ages had no notion of risk & no notion in any traditional culture – life only seen as hazardous
Reason: they saw dangers experienced as a given
Either comes from God, or comes from a world that is taken for granted
Risk first used by Western explorers when they travelled the world
Word referred to a world we are exploring and seeking to control & normalise
Attempts to control uncertainty of future became outdated with establishment of astronomy as science
17th/18th century probabilism was used as they laid claims to high degree of probability of something
happening
19th century statistics formed basis of probabilistic models which can be projected beyond the present
by deriving course of future from past trends
Today: no longer live our lives as fate (individualisation) – now take precautions for future “possible”
risks in everyday life = start worrying about what we did to nature instead of what nature can do to us
RISK SOCIETY MODEL APPLIED TO SA IN NUMBER OF WAYS & WILL BE EXAMINED IN SA
Pre-1994
SA was an authoritarian state where police had much greater powers, sentences were more effective,
there was a fear of conviction & effective border control that led to better control of illegal immigrants
Currently in SA – number of risks faced on daily basis
Corruption in enforcement, no clear leadership, more crime, trust in leadership evaporated, lack of
focus on these problems, porous borders, big number of acting senior posts in government (only
there for a short while so they cannot make a change), HIV/AIDS, farm murders & many others
Many authors feel risk becomes part of how we formulate our identity because risk so evident in our
daily life
And is influenced by specific risks in individuals geographical setting = therefore it is continental
Differential impacts of manufactured risk especially in SA as an economically poor country
That leads to damage due to AIDS, environmental pollution & political violence
2. DEFINING OF KEY CONCEPTS
RISK
Beck defined risk as anticipation of catastrophe; they are not real but are “becoming real”
Termed risk society as a society that is organised in response to risk
Sociologist Giddens described it as a society increasingly preoccupied with future & safety which
generates notion of risk
Also specific calculable uncertainties
Giddens stated notion of responsibility closely linked to risk
As new technologies invade the core of our lives & more of what we experience comes under
scientific spotlight, there is an increasing insecurity in the world as we are involved in systems we do
not understand
, Thus: risk society we increasingly live on technology frontier that no one completely understands and
generates variety of possible futures
Risk defined in risk society: as systematic way of dealing with hazards & insecurities
Induced and introduced by modernisation itself
CATASTROPHE & THREATS
Catastrophe is different from risk
Risk is the anticipation of catastrophe
Catastrophe is usually defined as a disaster; event causing great & usually sudden damage or suffering
Beck states moment risks become real (ex. in shape of terrorist attack) they stop being risks and
become catastrophes
Threats are endangerment & insecurity belonging to human existence from its beginning
Including sickness, short life expectancies, wars, epidemics, starvation etc.
Giddens: external risks are uncontrollable by man & defined by nature (like natural disasters ex. floods &
earthquakes)
Ancient times forthcoming disasters (natural disasters) attributed to God/nature = came from outside
To set up preventative measures against future damage was seen as pointless/sinful
MANUFACTURED UNCERTAINTIES
Giddens: manufactured risks are risks produced by the modernisation process, particularly
developments in science & technology (ex. terrorism & crime)
They create risk environments with little historical reference & largely unpredictable
Manufactured risk produces risk society
Beck manufactured uncertainties: dependant on human decisions & created by society itself
Cannot be externalised as it is existing in society, is experienced by every individual as it is inflicted
collectively, & is no longer privately insurable (ex. climate change)
Beck: perceptions of globalised manufactured risks & uncertainties characterised by 3 features in
modern society
a. De-localisation: are in principle omnipresent, uncontained effects of catastrophe where unfavourable
consequences “spill over” outside of insurance parameters (their causes & consequences not limited
to one geographical location or space)
b. Incalculable: refers to a resistance to quantitative assessment interpreting risk metrics and actuarial
calculations as hypothetical, consequences in principle incalculable
c. Non-compensability: refers to destruction of such magnitude that financial restoration no longer
proves sufficient
NEW CONCEPTS NEEDED IN MODERN SOCIETY
Beck states new concepts are needed in modern society as it changes and the nation state cannot be
described in same terms as Max Weber 100 years ago
Uses example of “couple” that is changing because of growing participation of women in work force
Real commitment is what defines a couple & their relationship today – Kaufmann stated when 2
people buy a washing machine together
Tried to show readers what a non-nation state is and relationships across national borderlines
Ex. how many “European” families are in Europe & how many are married and have children (European
microcosm: if all European countries had data on each other)
Could not find this information – ex. marriage in Brussels does not appear in German record
No information if you try to think systematically about these problems = needs to be solved
Actuarial thinking is actual scientific & statistical calculations
Actuarial Criminology refers to the monopoly of the State regarding social control which is diffused
amongst many different actors (e.g. private corrections/policing; community policing)
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