Sergey Kravchenko

MGIMO-University,

Russia

E-mail: sociol7@yandex.ru

The birth of “normal trauma”: The effect of non-linear development

Abstract. The article critically analyzes the approaches to different manifestations of traumatic development and the theories of trauma in historical and cultural context: P. Sztompka’s theory of becoming   displaying the effects of “society in action” and “pathological agencies”; J.C. Alexander’s theory of cultural construction of trauma diagnosing the role of mystified meanings in the deformation of social consciousness;  Zh.T. Toschenko’s theory of “the society of trauma” that substantiates a new specific modality of development. Relying on the postulates of these approaches the author of the paper proposes further investigations, showing the formation of a new phenomenon in the form of “normal trauma”, which is understood as a ‘normal’, emergent, and significant deformation of socio-technical-natural realities due to the effects of non-linear development. It is stated that traumatic development leads to the increase of such “systemic uncertainties” as “normal accidents” (Ch. Perrow), ‘normal’ “climate turbulence” (J. Urry, A. Giddens), “normal anomie” (S. Kravchenko) that in fact give traumas determined by non-linear development a ‘normal, natural’ character. The author sees the minimization of the consequences of “normal trauma” in a special type of reflexivity, which includes both “humanistic” and “rigidity” turns aimed at achieving a more humane society and counteracting turbulences.

Received: September, 2019

1st Revision: January, 2020

Accepted: June, 2020

DOI: 10.14254/2071-789X.2020/13-2/11

JEL Classification: Z13, Z19

Keywords: nonlinearity, reflexivity, trauma, construction of trauma, the society of trauma, “normal trauma”, complexity, digitalization, humanistic turn, rigidity turn