Dr. Ulrich Beck (b. 1944) is a German sociologist who holds a professorship at Munich University and at the London School of Economics. He studies modernization, individualization and globalization.

From 1966 onwards he studied sociology, philosophy, psychology and political science at Munich University. In 1972 he left as a Doctor of Philosophy and worked as a sociologist at Munich University. In 1979 he qualified as a university lecturer. He was professor at the universities of Münster (1979-1981) and Bamberg (1981-1992). Since 1992 Beck has been professor for sociology and director of the Institute for Sociology of Munich University. He is also the British Journal of Sociology Professor at the London School of Economics. He has received many international prizes and honors.

From 1995 to 1997 he was a member of the Kommission für Zukunftsfragen der Freistaaten Bayern und Sachsen (Bavarian-Saxon Commission on Future Questions). Since 1999 he has been the speaker of the DFG research programme on Reflexive Modernity.

Works

Beck is the editor of the sociological journal Soziale Welt (since 1980), the author of some 150 articles, and the author or editor of many books, for example:

• Risikogesellschaft - Auf dem Weg in eine andere Moderne (1986) [1] (Risk Society)

• Riskante Freiheiten - Gesellschaftliche Individualisierungsprozesse in der Moderne (1994, editor together with Elisabeth Beck-Gernsheim )

• Eigenes Leben - Ausflüge in die unbekannte Gesellschaft, in der wir leben (1995, together with W. Vossenkuhl and U. E. Ziegler, photographs by T. Rautert)

• Reflexive Modernisierung - Eine Debatte (1996, together with Anthony Giddens and Scott Lash ) (Reflexive Modernization)

• Was ist Globalisierung? (1997)

• World Risk Society (1999)

Beck has brought many newly-coined terms to (German) sociology, namely Fahrstuhleffekt (elevator effect ), Risikogesellschaft (risk society) and Zweite Moderne (second modernity , see also reflexive modernization and post-modernity).

External links

• Professor Ulrich Beck - his staff page at the LSE
• Homepage of Prof. Dr. Ulrich Beck (German)
• Ulrich Beck trading card