This image is from the book "The Consequences of Modernity" (1990) by the British sociologist Anthony Giddens.
The diagram, titled "High-consequence risks of modernity," illustrates Giddens' theory that the institutional dimensions of modern society carry inherent, large-scale risks. These four specific risks are:
Growth of totalitarian power: Linked to the institutional dimension of surveillance and the control of information.
Nuclear conflict or large-scale warfare: Linked to the industrialization of war and the build-up of military power.
Ecological decay or disaster: Linked to the transformation of nature through industrialism.
Collapse of economic growth mechanisms: Linked to the inherent volatility of global capitalistic systems.
The text below the figure discusses how "the organic health of the earth is maintained by decentralised ecological cycles," a perspective Giddens notes as being central to modern ecological movements that challenge the destructive tendencies of industrialism.
