Second modernity as a research agenda: theoretical and empirical explorations in the ‘meta-change’ of modern society

Authors: Beck, Ulrich; Lau, Christoph

Source: The British Journal of Sociology, Volume 56, Number 4, December 2005 , pp. 525-557(33)

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Abstract:

In this article we are reformulating the theory of reflexive modernization as an empirical research programme and summarize some of the most recent findings which have been produced by a research consortium in Munich (integrating four universities, funded by the German Research Society (DFG)). On this basis we reject the idea that Western societies at the beginning of the twenty-first century move from the modern to the post-modern. We argue that there has been no clear break with the basic principles of modernity but rather a transformation of basic institutions of modernity such as the nation-state and the nuclear family. We would suggest, therefore, that what we are witnessing is a second modernity. Finally, we reform the theory of reflexive modernization in reaction to three uttered objections.

Keywords: Reflexive modernization; postmodernity; individualization; globalization; boundary transcendence; decision-making

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-4446.2005.00082.x

Affiliations: 1: Department of Philosophy and Social Sciences, University of Augsburg

Publication date: 2005-12-01