“Risk Society”: The Cult of Theory and the Millennium?

The relation between theory and empirical data in sociology and social policy is explored through a critique of Ulrich Beck's influential book, Risk Society . Consideration is given to the extent to which a book that purports to describe contemporary societies in general is actually rooted in the unique circumstances of postwar Germany. The various arguments of Risk Society are reviewed and tested against relevant empirical reports from England. Many of the historical and contemporary generalizations made by Beck are shown to be questionable. The conclusion reflects on the popularity of the genre in which Beck is working and questions the consistent glumness of its attitude to contemporary societies—whether those of the 1890s or the 1990s. The new millennium might be a time for a new spirit and the rejection of the nostalgia and conservatism of humanities‐oriented scholarship.