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Exploring the Social and Political Foundations of Modern Economies

The Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies (MPIfG) conducts basic research on the governance of modern societies. It aims to develop an empirically based theory of the social and political foundations of modern economies by investigating the interrelation between economic, social, and political action.

Independent and Non-Profit

The MPIfG is one of the more than eighty institutes of the Max Planck Society (MPG). The MPG is an independent, non-profit, non-university research organization that is primarily financed with public funds. Max Planck Institutes are independent and autonomous in the choice and pursuit of their research interests.

International Cooperation

The MPIfG works closely with partners pursuing comparable research interests in the social sciences. Cooperation, interdisciplinary thinking, and worldwide networking between research institutions and researchers are prerequisites for excellent research and results.

News

Back to development in the XXI century

In the new issue of economic sociology. perspectives and conversations, development experts and economic sociologists join editor Mariana Heredia to explore development in the 21st century across Latin America and beyond. From discussions of competing notions of development to development in the context of antitrust and competition policy, finance, informality, and productive planning, each contributor to the new issue revisits the topic from their own perspective.

Journalist in Residence Fellowship

The Journalist in Residence Fellowship of the MPIfG is open to staff or freelance journalists who have several years of professional experience, regularly cover academic or political, social, or economic topics, and wish to work on a research project of their own in dialogue with the Institute’s researchers. The fellowship is advertised once a year. The deadline for applications for stays in the academic year 2024/25 is April 30, 2024.

Visiting Researchers Program

International research cooperation enriches the work and life of our Institute. Our Visiting Researchers Program is one of the ways in which we aim to encourage an active exchange between scholars in Germany and abroad. The program is designed for researchers working in the fields of economic sociology or comparative/international political economy, who are invited to spend between two and twelve months at the MPIfG.
Application deadline is April, 30.

Verkaufte Zukunft: Warum der Kampf gegen den Klimawandel zu scheitern droht

Wege aus dem Kapitalismus? Autorengespräche mit Colin Crouch, Nancy Fraser, Claus Offe, Wolfgang Streeck und Joseph Vogl

Austerity from the Left: Social Democratic Parties in the Shadow of the Great Recession

Dealing in Uncertainty: Insurance in the Age of Finance

The Rise of Central Banks: State Power in Financial Capitalism

Behördenconsulting: Unternehmensberater in der öffentlichen Verwaltung der Bundesrepublik, 1970er- bis 2000er-Jahre

Capital Claims: Power and Global Finance

Democracy at Work: Contract, Status and Post-Industrial Justice

Architectures of Hope: Infrastructural Citizenship and Class Mobility in Brazil’s Public Housing

Der erschöpfte Staat: Eine andere Geschichte des Neoliberalismus

Diminishing Returns: The New Politics of Growth and Stagnation

Recoding Power: Tactics for Mobilizing Tech Workers

Zwischen Globalismus und Demokratie: Politische Ökonomie im ausgehenden Neoliberalismus

Critical Encounters: Capitalism, Democracy, Ideas

Uncertain Futures: Imaginaries, Narratives, and Calculation in the Economy

MPIfG Discussion Papers

MPIfG Discussion Papers present results from ongoing research and contribute to current scholarly and public debate. They are subject to internal peer review and published open access.

MPIfG Journal Articles

Articles by MPIfG researchers that have previously been published in peer-reviewed journals are published online in the MPIfG Journal Articles series.

Endrejat, Vanessa

Off-Balance-Sheet Policies to the Rescue: The Role of Statistical Expertise for European Public–Private Partnerships. In: Competition & Change, 2024.

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Nicoli, Francesco, David van der Duin, Roel Beetsma, Björn Bremer, Brian Burgoon, Theresa Kuhn, Maurits J. Meijers, Anniek de Ruijter

Closer during Crises? European Identity during the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Russian Invasion of Ukraine. In: Journal of European Public Policy, 2024.

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All publications by MPIfG researchers