Wolfgang Streeck (; born 27 October 1946) is a German
economic sociologist
Economic sociology is the study of the social cause and effect of various economic phenomena. The field can be broadly divided into a classical period and a contemporary one, known as "new economic sociology".
The classical period was concerned ...
and emeritus director of the
Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies in Cologne.
Early life
Streeck was born "just outside Münster", the son of refugees – ethnic Germans from eastern Europe displaced by the end of the Second World War. His mother was a
Sudeten German from Czechoslovakia.
Streeck studied
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation and ...
at the
Goethe University Frankfurt
Goethe University (german: link=no, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main) is a university located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It was founded in 1914 as a citizens' university, which means it was founded and funded by the wealt ...
and pursued graduate studies in the same discipline at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
between 1972 and 1974.
Career
In 1974 he became assistant professor in sociology at the
University of Münster
The University of Münster (german: Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, WWU) is a public research university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.
With more than 43,000 students and over 120 fields of stud ...
and in 1986 finished his
habilitation
Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including ...
in sociology at
Bielefeld University
Bielefeld University (german: Universität Bielefeld) is a university in Bielefeld, Germany. Founded in 1969, it is one of the country's newer universities, and considers itself a "reform" university, following a different style of organization ...
. Between 1988 and 1995 he worked as professor of sociology and industrial relations at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...
, returning to Germany in 1995 to take up the post of director of the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies and working as professor of sociology at the
University of Cologne
The University of Cologne (german: Universität zu Köln) is a university in Cologne, Germany. It was established in the year 1388 and is one of the most prestigious and research intensive universities in Germany. It was the sixth university to ...
. He retired from his directorship in 2014, becoming emeritus director.
Work
Streeck's research is focused on analyzing the political economy of capitalism, wherein he proposes to take on a dialectical approach to
institutional analysis as opposed to the more rigid
varieties of capitalism
''Varieties of Capitalism: The Institutional Foundations of Comparative Advantage'' is a 2001 book on economics, political economy, and comparative politics edited by political economists Peter A. Hall and David Soskice.
Contents
''Varietie ...
. He has written extensively on the political economy of Germany and more recently has involved himself in debates over the politics of
austerity
Austerity is a set of political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three primary types of austerity measures: higher taxes to fund spendi ...
, the rise of what he terms the debt-state as a result of the
neoliberal
Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent fa ...
revolution of the 1980s and the future of the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been ...
.
[ Besides numerous articles published in various European journals, he has authored scores of books, some of them available in translations.
]
End of capitalism
In 2014, Streeck wrote an article in the ''New Left Review
The ''New Left Review'' is a British bimonthly journal covering world politics, economy, and culture, which was established in 1960.
History Background
As part of the British "New Left" a number of new journals emerged to carry commentary on m ...
'' where he postulates how capitalism might come to an end, discussing several factors that make this likely to happen. Streeck posits that because contemporary capitalism is beset by five disorders—declining growth, oligarchy, starvation of the public sphere, corruption and international anarchy—for which at present no political agency exists to confront them, it will continue to regress and atrophy until at some point it might end.[ He expanded on this theme in a 2016 book ''How Will Capitalism End?'']
Personal life
Streeck and his wife live in part of the farmyard of a castle in Brühl, a small town close to Cologne.
Books
* ''Critical Encounters. Capitalism, Democracy, Ideas.'' Verso Books, London 2020, ISBN 978-1-78873-874-3.
* ''How Will Capitalism End?: Essays on a Failing System.'' Verso Books, Brooklyn 2016, ISBN 978-1-78478-401-0.
* ''Buying Time: The Delayed Crisis of Democratic Capitalism''. Verso Books, London 2014, ISBN 978-1-78168-548-8.
* ''Re-Forming Capitalism: Institutional Change in the German Political Economy''. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2009.
* Governing interests: business associations facing internationalization. Routledge, 2006, ISBN 0-415-36486-8.
* with Ruth Dukes
Ruth (or its variants) may refer to:
Places
France
* Château de Ruthie, castle in the commune of Aussurucq in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France
Switzerland
* Ruth, a hamlet in Cologny
United States
* Ruth, Alabama
* Ruth, Ark ...
: ''Democracy at Work: Contract, Status and Post-Industrial Justice'', Cambridge: Polity 2022.
* with Colin Crouch: ''The diversity of democracy: corporatism, social order and political conflict.'' Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006, ISBN 1-84542-613-4.
* with Kathleen Ann Thelen: ''Beyond continuity: institutional change in advanced political economies.'' Oxford University Press, 2005, ISBN 0-19-928046-0.
* with Kôzô Yamamura: ''The origins of nonliberal capitalism: Germany and Japan in comparison.'' Cornell University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8014-3917-5.
* with Colin Crouch: ''Political economy of modern capitalism: mapping convergence and diversity.'' SAGE, 1997, ISBN 0-7619-5653-0.
References
External links
Max-Planck Institute Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Wolfgang Streeck
Wolfgang Streeck's blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Streeck, Wolfgang
1946 births
Living people
People from Lengerich, Westphalia
German sociologists
Macroeconomists
Economic sociologists
Aufstehen
Max Planck Society people
Goethe University Frankfurt alumni
Columbia University alumni
University of Cologne faculty
University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty
Corresponding Fellows of the British Academy
Max Planck Institute directors