FEAR IN CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY: ITS NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE EFFECTS

"Contemporary social science avoids the discussion of fear as a major factor that shapes social order and the quality of life. Fear in Contemporary Society fills this lacuna. The fear of punishments for violating the laws imposed by the state and other social institutions, including the family, public opinion, and the church, is useful for the maintenance of order in society. Vladimir Shlapentokh writes in opposition to mainstream American social science, which is hostile toward coercion and the state and sees social order as based only on the allegiance of the individual to the dominant culture and self-regulation. Pointing to the flaws of these views, which are primarily based on the Lockean-Parsonian tradition and the postmodern perspective, Shlapentokh proposes that the Hobbesian viewpoint be included in social analysis. He assumes that social order is shaped not only from "below," but also from "above," with the state as a positive agent."--Jacket.