Social rationality and the society of knowledge

In the article the specific modern society in the context of the problem of social rationality is studied. The character of new social and political role of scientific knowledge, its influence on the process of social transformations in the context of forming a new type society which is named the society of knowledge is analyzed. As a key task of the social cognition the adequate representation of the social reality both in theoretical and in methodological aspects is considered. A special attention is given to the analysis of modern forms of the social rationality (reflexive, communicative models of the sim-plified rationality) in the context of the paradigm the society of knowledge. The complexity of modern society calls for its deeper circulation on itself, needs to take into account diverse social interactions and relationships. The-se aspects are reflected in the model of communicative rationality and re-flective model of rationality. Communicative rationality model, the most complete picture according to the concept of Habermas, includes various types of discourses taking into account the specificity of different spheres of social reality (scientific, moral, legal, aesthetic). According to Giddens, one of the most important characteristics of modern society is its reflexivity. Re-flexivity is a key concept of the theory of structuration and means the ability to transform social practices under the influence of the information received, essentially altering its character. According to Ulrich Beck, the reflexivity of modern society is associated with new ways of understanding the risks, a common characteristic of which is ontological insecurity. The reflexive na-ture of modern social rationality is analyzed by A. Touraine, emphasizing that the main feature of modern societies-strengthening and increasing the concentration of their ability to impact on themselves. However, along with the concept of a more complex and mediated nature of modern social ra-tionality, not amenable to representation (disappearing rationality escapes rationality), there is an opposite trend in contemporary social theory, i.e. an appeal to the models simplified rationality (the theory of bounded rationali-ty, useful knowledge, McDonaldization).