The Sociology Book

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threshold; that our advances
have opened up the possibility
of disasters on an unprecedented
scale. Should such a catastrophe
occur, it would be so grave that
it would be almost impossible
to contain its impact or to return
to the way things were before.

Qualities of risk
Beck identifies three significant
qualities of risk. First, global,
irreparable damage: accidents
cannot be compensated for,
so insurance no longer works.
Second, exclusion of precautionary
aftercare: we cannot return
conditions to the way they were
before the accident. Third, no limit
on space and time: accidents are
unpredictable, can be felt across
national borders, and impose their
effects over long periods of time.
In terms of dealing with the
possibility or likelihood of such
calamities happening in the
future, traditional methods of risk
calculation have become obsolete
in relation to many of the new kinds
of risks that concern us in the 21st

century, such as health pandemics,

nuclear meltdowns, or genetically

modified foodstuffs. As a result,

how do scientists, corporations,

and governments try to manage

such potentially catastrophic risks?

Real and virtual risk

Beck identifies a strange ambiguity

in how society understands risks.

On the one hand, they are real—

they exist as objective, latent

threats at the heart of scientific and

technological progress. They cannot

be ignored, even if authorities try

to pretend they do not exist. At

the same time, however, risks are

also virtual; that is, they represent

current anxieties about events

that have yet to—or may never—

happen. Nonetheless, it is the

apparent threat posed by these

risks, the anticipation of disaster,

that ushers in new challenges

to the power of scientists,

corporations, and governments.

Beck observes that no one is

an expert on questions of risk, not

even the experts themselves. The

intrinsic complexity of many risks

means that scientists often cannot

agree on questions of likelihood,

possible severity, or how to set up

proper safety procedures. In fact in

the public mind, it is these same

experts—in their manipulation of

genes or splitting of atomic nuclei—

who may have created the risks.

However, while there is public

skepticism about scientists, Beck

notes that they are nevertheless

essential in the risk society.

Precisely because we cannot feel,

hear, smell, or see the risks that ❯❯

See also: August Comte 22–25 ■ Karl Marx 28–31 ■ Max Weber 38–45 ■ Anthony Giddens 148–49

LIVING IN A GLOBAL WORLD

Neither science, nor the

politics in power... are in

a position to define or

control risks rationally.

Ulrich Beck

Ulrich Beck Ulrich Beck was born in 1944

in the town of Stolp, Germany,

which is now part of Poland.

From 1966 onward he studied

sociology, philosophy, psychology,

and political science at Munich

University. In 1972 he received

his doctorate at Munich University

and in 1979 he became a full

university lecturer. He was

subsequently appointed professor

at the universities of Münster

and Bamberg.

From 1992 Beck was professor

of sociology and director of the

Institute for Sociology at Munich’s

Ludwig Maximilian University; he

was also Visiting Professor at

the London School of Economics.

Beck was one of Europe’s most

high-profile sociologists; in

addition to his academic writing

and research he commented on

contemporary issues in the

media and played an active

role in German and European

political affairs. He died in 2015.

Key works

1986 Risk Society

1997 What is Globalization?

1999 World Risk Society

2004 The Cosmopolitan Vision