SECURITY AND CONTEMPORARY THREATS – RECONFIGURATION OF PARADIGMS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE PHILOSOPHY OF SECURITY

Abstract

The aim of this article is to analyse the evolution of security paradigms and their reconfiguration in the face of multidimensional threats of the third decade of the 21st century. The authors juxtapose Thomas Hobbes’ classical theory of contractualism with modern concepts of the risk society proposed by Ulrich Beck and Yuval Noah Harari, and with empirical material from 2023–2026. The article addresses the problem of the insufficiency of a state‑centric model of security in the face of contemporary transnational, ecosystemic and algorithmic risks. The method applied combines a critical review of the literature with secondary data analysis based on reports of key national institutions (CBOS, GUS, ZUS, NASK, WIB) and international organisations (Eurostat, WEF, EIB). The study reveals a pronounced “bipolarity” in the perception of security: high stability at the local level is accompanied by an escalation of existential fears. The key vectors of uncertainty are identified as: geopolitical (63% fear for sovereignty), technological (the phenomenon of “domesticated uncertainty”), ecosystemic (68% indicating climate threat) and an institutional trust crisis (57% lack of trust in the justice system). The article argues that in 2026 security becomes a process of continuous reconfiguration, and the traditional Leviathan model gives way to the “e‑Sovereign” and algorithmic management of existence. The conclusions point to the need to move from Hobbesian territorial realism toward building systemic resilience and strengthening the autonomous agency of the individual in an asymmetric international environment.