En esta obra no se trata de hablar de los riesgos a los que tenemos que enfrentarnos diariamente en la sociedad moderna. Ni tampoco del control de esos mismos riesgos. Las presentes lineas se refieren al problema de la aceptabilidad tal y como aparece en las distintas ciencias sociales, centrandose concretamente en la aceptabilidad del riesgo. A pesar de las recientes criticas que estan recibiendo tanto las ciencias en general como las ciencias sociales en particular, Mary Douglas se olvida de los determinismos biologicos y de las investigaciones medicas para adoptar un enfoque de la aceptabilidad del riesgo en el que se destacan sus implicaciones eticas; sus relaciones con la ecologia y la economia; la tendencia de la psicologia a despreciar su dimension social; la influencia del juicio moral; la codificacion a que la somete las instituciones sociales; etc. En consecuencia, la esperanza final de este libro no es realizar grandes demostraciones, sino dar una oportunidad a un cierto acercamiento que hasta ahora no habia gozado de demasiada suerte: un ensayo de metodo antropologico que, a su vez, toma prestados elementos tanto de los enfoques economicos como de las teorias de la eleccion racional. Como dice el introductor del libro, Joan Bestard, en el caso de Mary Douglas los analisis de los peligros que invaden al individuo contemporaneo no pueden hacerse sin prescindir de un analisis cultural de la distribucion de la culpa en diferentes niveles sociales.

This book critically explores from a comparative international perspective the role medicine plays in constructing and managing natural and social risks, including those belonging to modern medical technology and expertise. Drawing together chapters written by professional practitioners and social scientists from the UK, South America, Australia and Europe, the book offers readers an insightful and thought-provoking analysis of how modern medicine has transformed our understanding of both ourselves and the world around us, but in so doing has arguably failed to fully recognize and account for, its unintended and negative effects. This is an essential read for social scientists, practitioners and policymakers who want to better understand how they can develop new ways of thinking about how modern medicine can promote social goods and enhance public health.

This book shows how the adoption of the neoliberal development model has increased the social vulnerability to disasters, with a special focus on Mexico, a country which once was the role model of the neoliberal turn in Latin America. It brings together 12 case studies of disasters such as floods, earthquakes and volcanic emergencies, in both urban and rural areas, to show how neoliberal development projects and changes in legislation affected disaster prevention and management in different parts of the country. The case studies from Mexico are complemented by two comparative studies which analyze the impacts of neoliberalism in disaster prevention and management in Mexico, Brazil, United States and Italy. Disasters and Neoliberalism: Different Expressions of Social Vulnerability presents a unique contribution to the interdisciplinary field of disaster research by presenting qualitative studies of disaster vulnerability from the perspective of scholars from the Global South, bringing a fresh and critical approach to English speaking social sciences qualitative researchers working on disaster risks in a number of fields, such as geography, anthropology, sociology, political science and environmental studies.

This book provides a global perspective on COVID-19, taking the heterogenous realities of the pandemic into account. Contributions are rooted in critical social science studies of risk and uncertainty and characterized by theoretical approaches such as cultural theory, risk society theory, governmentality perspectives, and many important insights from ‘southern’ theories. Some of the chapters in the book have a more theoretical-conceptual emphasis, while others are more empirically oriented – but all chapters engage in an insightful dialogue between the theoretical and the empirical, in order to develop a rich, diverse and textured picture of the new challenge the world is facing and responding to. Addressing multiple levels of responses to the coronavirus, as understood in terms of, institutional and governance policies, media communication and interpretation, and the sense-making and actions of individual citizens in their everyday lives, the book brings together a diverse range of studies from across 6 continents. These chapters are connected by a common emphasis on applying critical theoretical approaches which help make sense of, and critique, the responses of states, organisations and individuals to the social phenomena emerging amid the Corona pandemic.

This book engages with the experience of space and time in youth cultures across the world. Putting together contemporary case studies on young transnationalists, young glocals and young protesters in cities on the five continents, it analyzes new agoras and chronotopes in global cities. It is based on a selection of papers first presented to the International Sociological Association (ISA) Research Committee 34 session on Youth Cultures, Space and Time that took place during the ISA World Congresses of Sociology in Gothenburg, Sweden (2010), and in Yokohama, Japan (2014). The value of this volume for youth researchers worldwide is twofold. Firstly, the chapters exemplify innovative approaches to understanding the fluid and dynamic urban space-time dimension in which young people’s cultural and bodily practices are located. Secondly, the volume offers a transnational perspective. Chapter contributors come from countries across the world, and give account of very diverse youth culture phenomena. They represent both established researchers and new voices in youth research. Contributors are: Óscar Aguilera Ruiz, Ilenya Camozzi, Carles Feixa, Vitor Sérgio Ferreira, Liliana Galindo Ramírez, Elham Golpoush-Nezhad, Leila Jeolás, Jeffrey J. Juris, Hagen Kordes, Sofia Laine, Carmen Leccardi, Pam Nilan, Jordi Nofre, Ndukaeze Nwabueze, Luca Queirolo Palmas, Yannis Pechtelidis, Geoffrey Pleyers, José Sánchez García, Mahmood Shahabi. Youth, Space and Time is now available in paperback for individual customers.

Gender issues are central to the causes and impact of the ongoing AIDS epidemic. The editors bring together cutting edge contemporary scholarship on gender and AIDS in one volume. They address questions related to gender and sexuality, how women and men live the epidemic differently and how such differences lead to different outcomes. The volume joins research on Africa, Asia and Latin America and illustrates how the epidemic has different gendered characteristics, causes and consequences in different regions. Collectively, the chapters demonstrate the fundamental ways that gender influences the spread of the disease, its impact and the success of prevention efforts. This scholarly, interdisciplinary volume provides a comprehensive introduction to the themes and issues of gender, AIDS and global public health and informs students, policy makers and practitioners of the complexity of the gendered nature of AIDS.