The theoretical basis of the study risk in the approach of social constructionism

Abstract

In the modern information society, content is created by social networks and the media. The created context independently launches the mechanisms for changing the environment. This influences the behavior of citizens, building their behavioral strategies. In this regard, the study of the process of constructing risks and the factors influencing it is relevant and significant. The article discusses classical risk theories (P. Slovik, M. Douglas, E. Giddens, W. Beck) and the theory of social constructionism from the point of view of their theoretical capabilities for studying the risk construction process. Thus, classical sociological risk theories distinguish risk perception factors, determine the social groups involved in the design process and the possibility of categorizing the phenomenon as risk or not risk in the process of public discourse. In the framework of the approach of social constructionism, the mechanisms of risk construction are considered: institutionalization (P. Berger and T. Luckman) and securitization (Copenhagen school of international relations). The process of institutionalizing risk in the article is described on the example of the disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. It is specified that the social communication process of creating and changing risk can be used in political and managerial strategies.