Living in Dangerous Times: Fear, Insecurity, Risk and Social Policy

Living in Dangerous Times analyses the impact of the pervasive fear experienced in our lives on the development of social policy in the UK. A series of original essays by a distinguished team of social and public policy analysts reveals the complexities of policy development and governance in a post-9/11 – and post-7/11 – world gripped by uncertainty and fear. These thought-provoking essays illustrate how public policies are simultaneously centred around notions of public resilience and vulnerability; and show how the perceived erosion of social securities has given rise to policies that are often implemented at the expense of human rights. Other areas explored are the impact of faith, sexuality and ethnicity on attitudes to risk and uncertainty; fear in urban spaces; and fear and its impact on public health, on child protection workers and on our perceptions of high-risk criminals.

This book provides an authoritative analysis into the increasing complexities of public policy development against the sobering backdrop of fear that permeates today’s world.