Negotiating Social Forces

Abstract

This chapter slightly changes the perspective from the people’s experience of risk-taking in everyday life to the broader social forces, which shape risk-taking experiences, such as socio-structural (e.g. social class and gender), organisational, occupational and biographical forces. This also includes the loss of agency when risk-taking is driven by external pressure and the ability to take risks is minimised or lost. Still, in line with the book’s approach, the focus of the chapter remains risk-taking as part of the often-conflictual process of people negotiating their realities, concerns and desires of life.