Wealth and Social Inequality
Research Focus
This research focus is conducting a number of projects exploring the development of wealth distribution, the influence of great wealth on politics and society, the role of foundations, processes of inheritance, the mechanisms of wealth preservation (and destruction), and the expectations and attitudes of high net worth individuals. Research on the role played by the family in the reproduction of great wealth as well as in our understanding of the development of today’s capitalist economic and social orders is central to the projects. The focus of the projects lies in sociology as well as political science, with a particular emphasis on historical lines of development. The projects embrace quantitative or qualitative research designs and include comparative studies of different countries.
This research focus is funded by the Leibniz Prize awarded to Jens Beckert.
Current Research Projects
Plural Meanings of Property in Wealthy Families
Doctoral Projects