Risk : a study of its origins, history and politics / Matthias Beck, Queen's University, UK, Beth Kewell, the University of Stavanger, Norway.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Beck, Matthias, 1964-

Contributor:

Kewell, Beth.

Sabin W. Colton, Jr., Memorial Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Risk--History.

Risk.

Risk--Social aspects.

Risk--Political aspects.

Risk perception.

Uncertainty--Social aspects.

Uncertainty.

Uncertainty--Political aspects.

History.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (358 pages :) : illustrations (some color

Place of Publication:

New Jersey : World Scientific, [2014]

System Details:

text file

Summary:

Over a period of several centuries, the academic study of risk has evolved as a distinct body of thought, which continues to influence conceptual development in fields such as economics, management, politics and sociology. However, few scholarly works have given a chronological account of cultural and intellectual trends relating to the understanding and analysis of risk. Risk: A Study of its Origins, History and Politics aims to fill this gap by providing a detailed study of key turning points in the evolution of society's understanding of risk. Using a wide range of primary and secondary materials, Matthias Beck and Beth Kewell map the political origins and moral reach of some of the most influential ideas associated with risk and uncertainty at specific periods of time. The histrical focus of the book makes it an excellent introduction for readers who wish to go beyond specific risk management techniques and their theoretical underpinnings, to gain an understanding of the history and politics of risk. Book jacket.

Contents:

Introduction 1

Moral Reach and Ontological Insecurity 5

Homo Economics and Homo Ludens 8

About this Book 11

Chapter 1 Homo Ludens, Aleatorics and the Birth of Probability 15

From the Beginning 20

Cardano's Provenance: A Focus on Risk 24

Heroes of Aleatory Arithmetic 26

Play and Politics 29

Conclusion 37

Chapter 2 Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Century Fictions of Risk 41

Mapping the Ground 43

Post-Enlightenment Disasters and the Origins of Pessimism 47

Historical Disasters and the Fear of the Present 55

Dangers of Urban Life and Societal Dimensions of Disaster 59

Xenophobic Visions and the 'Political' Disaster Novel 72

War in the West 73

Wars with Asians 85

Conclusions 101

Chapter 3 'Pseudo-Sciences' of Risk 105

Setting the Scene 107

Dangerous Crowds and Technologies 111

Racial Hierarchies and Racial Threats 128

Endagered 'Rulers' 136

From Local Threat to Global Race War 145

Conclusion 156

Chapter 4 Decision Analysis and the Social Control of Technology 159

Transitions of 'Modernity' 160

The Rise and Fall of Technological Decision Analysis 167

The Beginnings of Modern Safety Science 168

Safety Expertise as Ideology 176

Signs of Decay 181

The Environmentalist Critique 188

Heuristic Limitations and Environmentalist Dissent 198

Conclusion 200

Chapter 5 International Crises and Precarious Global Systems 203

Predecessors: Retrospective Decision Analysis 207

Crises and Diplomatic History 211

Arms Race and Defence Expenditure 218

Alliances and Wars 225

Economic Crises 228

Pax Americana and Prospective Decision Analysis 234

Systems Theory and Global Risk Management 260

Systems Thinking 260

Global Modelling 267

Conclusion 285

Chapter 6 Macrosociological Dualities of Risk: Structural Inequality and Risk Society 289

Structural Inequality 294

Dependency Theory 298

Risk Society 305

Conclusion 308.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Sabin W. Colton, Jr., Memorial Fund.

ISBN:

981438321X

9789814383219

OCLC:

880744588