Interconnected networks and the governance of risk and trust

Abstract

Interconnected networks constitute the backbone of our society and bring many advantages to our daily life and activities. At the same time, however, our dependence on these networks and the fact that they are all interconnected makes our society vulnerable. Risks emerge from these interdependencies. How can society deal with these risks? To answer this question we first explore the closely related concepts of risk and trust. These explorations enable us to understand the implications of interconnected networks in terms of governance challenges. On the basis of this insight, we conclude that it is impossible to define risk as a 'general' policy concept. A major policy challenge in the governance of risk is not only the interplay of all kinds of networks and infrastructures, but also the interplay between diverse policy regimes with different governance models. We have discerned a number of specific governance models that can be used to handle the risks resulting from interconnected networks and infrastructures. Following Ashby's law of requisite variety, the variety of risks in the network society asks for a variety of risk governance models, in which different values are attached to the role of government, the private sector and the civil society.