Bio: (1938-) British sociologist. Anthony Giddens received his doctorate in sociology from King's College, Cambridge, where he later became a professor. Giddens was the director of the London School of Economics from 1997 to 2003 and later returned to teach at King's College. Giddens, together with his colleague David Held, founded the publishing house Polity Press, which published a large number of extremely important sociological books. From 1997 to 2007, Giddens was one of the most important and influential advisers to the British Prime Minister, from the Labour Party, Anthony Blair, who appointed Giddens life peerage in the House of Lords, the Upper House of the British parliament.

Giddens had a huge influence on sociology, but also on world politics. In the first part of his career, Giddens, with his analysis of the history of sociology, contributed to the enthronement of Marx, Durkheim, and Max Weber as the three most important sociological classics. In later sociological works, Giddens developed his macro-sociological approach known as the structuration theory, and then, in the last decade of the twentieth century, he became one of the most important theorists of modernity and modernization. Giddens had a great influence on politics, both directly, as an advisor of  Prime Minister Blair on the most important political decisions, and indirectly, as the main ideological advocate of the "third way" ideology, which influenced the political reorientation of social democratic parties around the world.

                                      History of Sociology

At the beginning of his career, Giddens studied the history of sociology in the books Capitalism and Modern Social Theory: An Analysis of the Writings of Marx, Durkheim and Max Weber (1971), The Class Structure of the Advanced Societies (1973), and Durkheim (1978). In the book Capitalism and Modern Social Theory, Giddens points out that all three sociological classics were focused on understanding and interpreting the most important process of their time -  the transition of society from feudal and traditional to capitalist and modern society. The book The Class Structure of Advanced Societies is an attempt to synthesize Marx's and Weber's views of classes and class structure.

                                    Theory of Structuration

Giddens' most significant contribution to sociology is his macro-theoretical approach, which he called the structuration theory. He first presented the basics of this approach in the books New Rules of Sociological Method (1976) and Central Problems in Sociological Theory (1979) and gave the most complete picture of this approach in the book The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration (1984). Giddens starts by studying the epistemological foundations of sociology and develops a sociological ontology that views social practices as the basis of the entire social world. Unlike philosophical ontology, which studies questions of being and existence, sociological ontology explores the transcultural and transhistorical qualities of social life.

The structuration theory is in the middle between two opposing sociological ontologies - individualism and collectivism. According to the individualistic approach, society and its characteristics are the product of the actions of actors who act freely, because they have the ability to understand themselves, society, and their own position in society. Actors pursue their own goals and based on that, they can direct or reshape the society in which they live. Examples of the individualistic approach are symbolic interactionism, ethnomethodology, phenomenology, and rational choice theories. According to the collectivist approach, society and its characteristics are the product of a social structure, which shapes, directs, and limits the activities of individuals and groups; examples of the collectivist approach are functionalism, structuralism, and Marxism. Structuration theory rejects the extreme views of both approaches, but at the same time incorporates the best aspects of both approaches. The essential difference between a collectivist and an individualist approach can be reduced to the contrast between emphasizing the importance of structure (collectivist approach) and actors (individualist approach). The main goal of Giddens' structuration theory is to overcome this, in his opinion, the apparent dualism between the actions of actors (agency) and structures.

Giddens proposes a reformulation of the lexicon of sociological concepts. In approaches such as Marxism and functionalism, the notion of structure refers to established patterns of social relations that deterministically affect actors, as an external and limiting force that shapes their behavior. Giddens proposes a very different conception of structure. He believes that structure should be understood as abstract models that exist as "virtual" because they exist "outside of time and space" and are "subject-less" and represent, most often, unconscious products of the reproduction of human practice. This view of structure corresponds to the way language is viewed in Lévi-Strauss structuralism. The product of this view of the structure is what Giddens calls the "duality of structure." The structure no longer acts only as something external and limiting, but also gives active and acting potential to the actors. The structure provides rules (syntax) by which actors direct their activities, but, on the other hand, it gives them the freedom to act. In that sense, the structure is, at the same time, a medium, but also a product of action. It is this duality of structure that forms the basis of the process of structuration.

Structures have rules, which can be more or less formal, explicit, and strict, but always serve as practical knowledge that governs behavior. Structures also serve as  “resources” that allow actors to manage other people. Giddens divides rules and resources into four main types: 1) performative rules - instructions for performing routine behavior; 2) normative rules - rules that regulate correct behaviors, i.e. routines, in specific situations; 3) authoritative resources - properties and manner of using the capacity to control other actors; 4) allocative resources - allocation of material resources among activities and people. Giddens singles out three types of structures: 1) structures of domination and power, 2) structures of signification and knowledge, and 3) structures of legitimation. The difference between these three types of structure is only analytical because all three types of structure work in every practical activity.

Giddens also gives a new view of the actions of actors (agency). Similar to the individualistic approach, Giddens believes that actors act freely, have the ability to understand themselves, society, and their position in it, strive to achieve their own goals and are therefore able to direct or reshape the society in which they live. He adapts the scheme of dividing the personality into three parts by dividing the actor's consciousness into three aspects: 1) discursive consciousness, 2) practical consciousness, and 3) unconscious. Three psychic mechanisms are active in the action of the actors: reflexive monitoring, rationalization, and motivation. Practical consciousness and rationalization represent common knowledge that allows actors to act, in a rules-limited, social life. Analysis of practical consciousness is most important for understanding the structuration process.

Actors acquire knowledge of the rules through previous activities, and apply these rules in new situations, but, at the same time, they react in a reflexive way to the specific circumstances of each situation. That reflexive reaction is the core of Giddens's concept of “reflexivity”. Actors are free in their actions, but they generally follow the rules to avoid ontological uncertainty. Ontological security is the product of the unconscious part of human consciousness, and it represents a state in which the actors feel calm and secure while performing activities, and the state of greatest security is achieved when the activity is performed routinely. As soon as the actors become unable to carry out routine activities, they feel the psychological effects of anomie and thus tend to create new routines, which are adapted to the changed circumstances. Routine behavior gives individuals ontological security, but also rules for everyday social life. Discursive consciousness is the ability of actors to express and explain in words their own knowledge of the structure and its rules and resources. Actors always have an unconscious and practical consciousness of routine activities, but often do not have a discursive consciousness of these activities, that is, they are not able to interpret and explain to themselves and others the rules of the structure that manages routine activities.

Giddens views both the structures and actions of actors as two sides of the same coin, which are connected through social practices. For that reason, structuration theory starts from the basic assumption that social practices are the basis of all the most important social phenomena. Long-term reproduction of similar forms of practice leads to the creation of stable patterns of events and lasting collectives that retain their structural features in the long run. When there is a transformation of social practices, then there is the establishment of new patterns of events and enduring collectives. Except in periods of great social transformation, most social practices routinely take place. Routine behavior occurs within "circuits of reproduction", which can take place within interpersonal encounters or through distance communication, through space and time. Communication through spatial and temporal distance is the basis of Giddens' concept of "time-space distanciation" of social systems.

In addition to structures, there are networks and systems of social relations in society, as well as relations of power and domination. The relations of power and domination exist as a set of relations between superior and subordinate groups within the institutional order of society. Such relationships are ubiquitous in all complex and large societies. Unlike most sociologists who have studied power, Giddens places greater emphasis on the balance of power, or „dialectic of control“, between superior and subordinate groups. Dominant groups base their power on the control of scarce resources, while the very nature of those resources depends on historical circumstances. However, superior groups can achieve their goals only with the active consent of subordinate groups. The ability of subordinate groups to comply with, or resist the will of superior groups provides subordinates with a significant level of bargaining power. When such bargaining power is well exercised, subordinate groups can achieve some of their goals and increase their autonomy.

                                    Historical Sociology

In his two-volume book A Contemporary Critique of Historical Materialism (1981, 1985), Giddens applies a structuration approach to the field of historical sociology. He believes that historical processes are the product of a large number of factors, as opposed to reductionist approaches to history that emphasize the influence of one factor, as historical materialism does. Giddens develops his own typology of societies and divides them into: bands, agricultural communities, city-states, empires, feudal societies, capitalist societies, and socialist societies. The basis of Giddens' approach to history and transformations from one type of society to another is found in the analysis of society's institutions. He singles out four main types of institutions: 1) political, 2) economic, 3) legal, and 4) symbolic. An analysis of all four types of institutions provides Giddens with the opportunity to develop a multi-causal approach to historical change. He sees societies as systems that are subject to great influence by other societies, through political and economic relations or military conflicts.

He applied this approach to history to the development of capitalism in Europe in the new century. The most important factors for the development of industrial capitalist society were: the development of administrative power, the creation of an abstract legal system, and the development of a bureaucratic apparatus in charge of tax collection. All three factors first developed within absolutist monarchies, and then expanded and strengthened even more with the advent of capitalism and the international system of nation-states. Wars and preparations for wars between European states have contributed to the concentration of administrative power, fiscal reorganization, and the consolidation of absolutism. The simultaneous development of capitalism, industry, and nation-states, after the fall of absolutism, was supported by the fact that each of these phenomena depended on and strengthened the others, while such development was made possible by a broader geopolitical context, as European states became politically and militarily dominant.

                                      View on Modernity

Giddens developed his approach to modernity in The Consequences of Modernity (1990), Modernity and Self-Identity (1991), and The Transformation of Intimacy (1992). He believes that at the end of the seventeenth century, there was a sharp discontinuity with the traditional social order. There are three sources of dynamic change associated with the emergence of modern society. In the modern age, there is a temporal and spatial separation of social life, because interpersonal interactions cease to be limited only by the physical closeness of individuals, and social relations begin to act at a distance. The two main mechanisms that act remotely are "symbolic tokens" and "expert systems". Symbolic tokens, such as media and money, can be exchanged regardless of who uses them. Expert systems are made up of people who have technical or professional knowledge. Both of these mechanisms require trust to operate effectively and provide ontological certainty. Modernity is also characterized by the development of the "wholesale reflexivity" of individuals and institutions. Modernity also includes the transformation of lifestyles and intimacy into "pure relationships", because trust and closeness come from the actors themselves, and not from the wider environment as was the case in a traditional society.

                                         The Third Way

In the books Beyond Left and Right (1994), The Third Way (1998) The Third Way and its Critics (2000), Giddens elaborated on a political project of reconstruction of society and social democratic politics. He believes that socialdemocratic politics, as it was applied in Europe after the Second World War, is outdated and needs to be reformulated. He criticizes the welfare state because it is too bureaucratic and inflexible and because it has failed to solve wider moral, social, and cultural problems. Technological change, economic globalization, environmental problems, multiculturalism, and the rights of minority groups are completely new challenges to which new political answers must be found.

Economic policy needs to shift from a comprehensive welfare state to creating a partnership between the state and civil society that will provide the best support for the economic and social empowerment of poor and excluded groups. In the field of politics, it is necessary to decentralize the state and develop a dialogical and deliberative democracy, which will reduce the paternalism of the state, develop cultural cosmopolitanism and overcome class-based political action. It is necessary to develop active political engagement of all citizens to, in addition to economic ones, solve environmental problems, equalize gender relations, improve the position of sexual minorities, and reduce ethnic conflicts in a multicultural society.

Main works

Capitalism and Modern Social Theory: An Analysis of the Writings of Marx, Durkheim and Max Weber (1971);

The Class Structure of the Advanced Societies (1973);

New Rules of Sociological Method: A Positive Critique of interpretative Sociologies (1976);

Durkheim (1978);

Central Problems in Social Theory: Action, Structure and Contradiction in Social Analysis (1979);

A Contemporary Critique of Historical Materialism, Vol. 1: Power, Property and the State (1981);

The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration (1984); 

A Contemporary Critique of Historical Materialism, Vol. 2: The Nation State and Violence (1985);

The Consequences of Modernity (1990);

Modernity and Self-Identity: Self and Society in the Late Modern Age (1991);

The Transformation of Intimacy: Sexuality, Love and Eroticism in Modern Societies (1992); Beyond Left and Right: The Future of Radical Politics (1994);

The Third Way: The Renewal of Social Democracy (1998);

The Third Way and Its Critics (2000);

Runaway World (2000);

Europe In The Global Age (2007);

The Politics of Climate Change (2009).