Risk Society: A New Modality Of Social Development

With the intensification of global integration process,human society has been in the times of "butterfly effect".While sharing the accomplishment of high-speed economic and social development,and advanced science and technology,human beings also gradually found themselves facing the "man-made risks" which may threat on their own lives,endangering the survival of the environment,and disrupting social order.The omnipresent "man-made risks" has become an important feature of contemporary society. When cheering into the knowledge society and information society,at the same time,in fact we have quietly entered a new form of social development---the risk society.At the three stages of human development in the primitive agricultural society, classical industrial society,and modern knowledge and information society,in spite of the risks themselves consistently haunting,the external features and internal characteristics are very different.In a single,linear stage of social development,the nature,feature and types of the risks are showed in traditional natural forms;however,in pluralism,non-linear stage of social development,the nature of risk source,the characteristic types,allocation model and transmission path is highlighted or obscured in complicated multiple forms.Although modernization most respected for market economy as the axis and science and technology as driving force,we will be aware of a high level of vulnerability of modernization until encountering risks;while globalization most popular for capital as the chain and culture as the carrier,the highly uncertain and complex risk can be unlimitedly amplification across time and space for the "ripple effect".This dissertation,starting from risk society from the perspective of modernization and globalization,mainly applying literature analysis,field research and case studies as a supplement,and basing on the integration of "globalization paradigm",fully drew the reflective risk society theory to focus on the dynamic risk construction models and static risk prevention strategy.The dissertation,mainly on the risk,dynamic-static analysis as horizontal line,and the macro-meso-micro perspective for vertical line,attempted to explain and explore the new form of social development----risk society,divided into five parts.Partâ… :Introduction mainly constituted of the origin and significance of research, research synthesis and paradigm,and the research ideas and methods.The first little part covered theoretical and practical aspects,the second involved in foreign and domestic literature review and adopted paradigm adopted,and the third referred to research framework and methods applied. Partâ…¡:General and comprehensive deconstruction on the nature,law and operation logic of risk society in a pluralism,non-linear stage of social development.Although the risk as a ghost-like symbiosis with the human habitat,risk was already out of the beginning simple,pure Etymology and semantic meaning of economics,insurance, science,statistics and actuarial study,and involved into the complicated social structure only in the risk society.Partâ…¢:from the micro-level,interest,discourse and policy as the core,provided overall analysis the dynamic risk construction model in three-dimensional,and overall picture,mainly focusing on the critical parameters-----the operation logic of interests, discourse and policy in risk allocation,risk broadcasting and risk political process.Partâ…£:from the concept level,a comprehensive static study on the risk prevention path,applying systematic cognitive system,and specialized security mechanisms and the institutionalized strategic arrangements for the lines,which focused on the systematic religion and science-----the supernatural forces for risk prevention and the producer and diagnosis of the risk;specialized insurance and legal----risk-sharing mechanisms and standardizing risk security mechanism;the institutionalized organization and the alliance----the origin of the nature,convergence,and vulnerability.Partâ…¤:from a macro level,that the risk society is a new idea of examining modern social development,especially for the transitional period in China,which is necessary step and inevitable price of social development,and should be taken as an important subject study on social development modality.This paper traced,interpreted and elaborated the theory of risk society,in order to really appreciate,speculate and even have deep insight into the mysterious picture---risk society.