Observing “Turbulent Times” through Risk (WG Social and Legal Systems)

With the perception of a global society in constant turmoil, many different social systems, such as law, economy, health, and politics, increasingly start employing “risk” as a relevant factor in decision-making. In this panel, we invite papers that, based on a systems theory approach, reflect on the use of risk in different aspects of society.

The session takes its starting point in sociology of law, and it specifically addresses law’s function in regulating risks that society faces. Transnational challenges, such as climate, health, security, trade, and migration may spark society’s risk regulation through law. This calls for attention to how society observes risks, and how law is applied as a mechanism to address phenomena that are observed as risks. Thus, analyses of society’s formulation of law and law’s effect are increasingly relevant for an in-depth understanding of society’s decision-making processes related to observed risks. Simultaneously, the activities of the legal system can themselves be perceived through the lens of risk by other positions in society in their communication and decision-making process.

With its legal sociological outset, the session stresses the relevance of examining law as a social phenomenon, and it therefore invites papers that apply socio-legal methods in the examination of law’s function as a social system. While this session has a specific focus on systems theory, it welcomes relevant empirical studies and dialogues with other perspectives.