Ernst Bernard Haas (1924 – March 6, 2003) was a German-American
political scientist
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
who made numerous contributions to theoretical discussions in the field of
international relations
International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such a ...
.
He was a leading authority on international relations theory, and was the founder of neofunctionalism.
Haas was a fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...
, and acted as a consultant to many national and international organizations.
Early life
Haas was born in
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, in 1924 to a secular Jewish family. He emigrated to the United States in 1938 due to the rise of
anti-semitism
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Antis ...
in Germany.
He attended the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...
and then worked in the U.S. Army Military Intelligence Service from 1943-46 where he studied
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
and Japanese weapons.
Following the war he studied 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 Manhatt ...
, where he received his BS, followed by an MA. It was there, too, that he gained his PhD in public law and government in 1952.
Academic career
Haas began his academic career in 1951 at UC Berkeley, where he remained until his death.
He was director of the UC Berkeley Institute for International Studies from 1969-73.
He was Robson Professor of Government in the
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
, political science department. After he retired in June 1999, he continued as a researcher and teacher at Berkeley.
He supervised many
graduate students
Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree.
The organization and str ...
who also went on to successful careers. He influenced
John Ruggie
John Gerard Ruggie (18 October 1944 – 16 September 2021) was the Berthold Beitz Research Professor in Human Rights and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University and an affiliated professor in international legal studie ...
.
Main interests
Haas was mainly interested in international integration. Haas realized that traditional European politics could be dramatically changed by liberalizing movement of goods capital, and persons, but his analysis differed significantly from classical
liberalism
Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...
.
He is the founder of neofunctionalism as an approach to the study of integration. Neofunctionalism recognizes the importance of national states but also stresses the roles of regional interest groups and the bureaucracy of
regional organization
Regional organizations (ROs) are, in a sense, international organizations (IOs), as they incorporate international membership and encompass geopolitical entities that operationally transcend a single nation state. However, their membership is c ...
s. Though the member states create the initial conditions, regional interest groups and international bureaucrats push the process forward, and national governments increasingly solve conflicts of interest by conferring more authority on the regional organizations, and citizens increasingly look to the regional organization for solutions to their problems.
Private life
Haas was married to the late Hildegarde Vogel Haas for 57 years. He had a son,
Peter M. Haas
Peter M. Haas (born January 23, 1955) is a professor of Political Science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst
Works
Haas published numerous books, monographs and articles.
In 1997, ''The Uniting of Europe'' was chosen as one of the 50 most significant books in international relations in the twentieth century by the journal '' Foreign Affairs''.Hyman 2003
His works include:
*Haas, Ernst B. 1952. The reconciliation of conflicting colonial policy aims: acceptance of the League of Nations mandate system. Int. Organ. 6(4):521–36
*Haas, Ernst B. 1953. The balance of power as a guide to policy-making. J. Polit. 15(3):370–98
*Haas, Ernst B. 1958. The Uniting of Europe. Stanford: Stanford Univ. Press
*Haas, Ernst B. 1961. International integration: the European and the universal process. Int. Organ. 15(3):366–92
*Haas, Ernst B. 1964. Beyond the Nation State. Stanford: Stanford Univ. Press
*Haas, Ernst B. 1970. Human Rights and International Action. Stanford: Stanford Univ. Press
*Haas, Ernst B. 1978. Global Evangelism Rides Again: How to Protect Human Rights Without Really Trying. Univ. Calif. Policy Pap. No. 5, Berkeley, CA
*Haas, Ernst B. 1990. When Knowledge is Power: Three Models of Change in International Organizations. Berkeley: Univ. Calif. Press
*Haas, Ernst B. 1993. Beware the Slippery Slope: Notes Toward the Definition of Justifiable Intervention. Univ. Calif., Inst. Int. Stud. Policy Pap. No. 42, Berkeley, CA
*Haas, Ernst B. 1997. Nationalism, Liberalism and Progress. Vol. 1. The Rise and Decline of Nationalism. Ithaca, NY: Cornell Univ. Press
*Haas, Ernst B. 2000. Nationalism, Liberalism and Progress. Vol. 2. The Dismal Fate of New Nations. Ithaca, NY: Cornell Univ. Press
*Haas, Ernst B. 2004 The Uniting of Europe. University of Notre Dame Press, new edition of the 1958 book with a new introduction of E.B. Haas (= pdf-download of text in der edition "100 books" of the European Parliament)