Seymour Martin Lipset
Encyclopedia
Seymour Martin Lipset was an American political sociologist, senior fellow
at the Hoover Institution
, and the Hazel Professor of Public Policy
at George Mason University
. His major work was in the fields of political sociology, trade union organization, social stratification, public opinion, and the sociology of intellectual life. He also wrote extensively about the conditions for democracy in comparative perspective.
, the son of Russian Jewish immigrants. He graduated from City College of New York
, where he was an anti-Stalinist left
ist and later became national chairman of the Young People's Socialist League
. He left the Socialist Party
in 1960 and described himself as a centrist, deeply influenced by Alexis de Tocqueville
, George Washington
, Aristotle
, and Max Weber
. Lipset received a doctorate
in sociology from Columbia University
in 1949. Before that he taught at the University of Toronto
.
(1975–1990) and the George D. Markham Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University
. He also taught at Columbia University
, the University of California, Berkeley
and the University of Toronto
. Lipset received the MacIver Prize for Political Man
(1960
) and the Gunnar Myrdal Prize for The Politics of Unreason. His book The First New Nation was a finalist for the National Book Award
. He was also awarded the Townsend Harris
and Margaret Byrd Dawson Medals for significant achievement, the Northern Telecom-International Council for Canadian Studies Gold Medal, and the Leon Epstein Prize in Comparative Politics by the American Political Science Association
. He has received the Marshall Sklare Award for distinction in Jewish studies
. In 1997, he was awarded the Helen Dinnerman Prize by the World Association for Public Opinion Research.
Lipset was a member of the National Academy of Sciences
. He was the only person to have been president of both the American Sociological Association
(1992–93) and the American Political Science Association
(1979–80). He also served as the president of the International Society of Political Psychology, the Sociological Research Association, the World Association for Public Opinion Research, and the Society for Comparative Research. He was also the president of the Paul F. Lazarsfeld Society in Vienna
.
His publications include American Exceptionalism: A Double-Edged Sword (W.W. Norton, 1996) and Continental Divide: The Values and Institutions of the United States and Canada (Routledge, 1990), and with Earl Raab Jews and the New American Scene (Harvard University Press, 1996).
Lipset was active in public affairs on a national level. He was a director of the United States Institute of Peace
. He has been a board member of the Albert Shanker Institute
, a member of the U.S. Board of Foreign Scholarships, co-chair of the Committee for Labor Law Reform, co-chair of the Committee for an Effective UNESCO
, and consultant to the National Endowment for the Humanities
, the National Humanities Institute, the National Endowment for Democracy
, and the American Jewish Committee
.
He was president of the American Professors for Peace in the Middle East, chair of the National B'nai B'rith
Hillel Commission and the Faculty Advisory Cabinet of the United Jewish Appeal
, and cochair of the Executive Committee of the International Center for Peace in the Middle East. He worked for years on seeking solution for the Israeli Palestinian conflict. This was part of his larger project of researching what factor allow societies to sustain stable and peaceful democracies. His work focused on the preconditions to democracy -- especially high socioeconomic development--(see also Amartya Sen
's work)--and the consequences of democracy for peace.
Lipset's first wife, Elsie, died in 1987. With her, he had three children: David, Daniel, and Cici. David Lipset is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Minnesota
. In addition to his three children, and six grandchildren, Lipset is survived by his second wife, Sydnee, whom he married in 1990.
Besides making substantial contributions to cleavage
theory, with his partner Stein Rokkan
, Lipset was one of the first proponents of the "theory of modernization", which holds that democracy is the direct result of economic growth.
"Those who only know one country know no country."
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
at the Hoover Institution
Hoover Institution
The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace is a public policy think tank and library founded in 1919 by then future U.S. president, Herbert Hoover, an early alumnus of Stanford....
, and the Hazel Professor of Public Policy
Public policy
Public policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and...
at George Mason University
George Mason University
George Mason University is a public university based in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, south of and adjacent to the city of Fairfax. Additional campuses are located nearby in Arlington County, Prince William County, and Loudoun County...
. His major work was in the fields of political sociology, trade union organization, social stratification, public opinion, and the sociology of intellectual life. He also wrote extensively about the conditions for democracy in comparative perspective.
Early life and education
Lipset was born in New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, the son of Russian Jewish immigrants. He graduated from City College of New York
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York is a senior college of the City University of New York , in New York City. It is also the oldest of the City University's twenty-three institutions of higher learning...
, where he was an anti-Stalinist left
Anti-Stalinist left
The anti-Stalinist left is an element of left-wing politics that is critical of Joseph Stalin's policies and the political system that developed in the Soviet Union under his rule...
ist and later became national chairman of the Young People's Socialist League
Young People's Socialist League
The Young People's Socialist League , founded in 1989, is the official youth arm of the Socialist Party USA. The group's membership consists of those democratic socialists under the age of 30, and its political activities tend to concentrate on increasing the voter turnout of young democratic...
. He left the Socialist Party
Socialist Party of America
The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...
in 1960 and described himself as a centrist, deeply influenced by Alexis de Tocqueville
Alexis de Tocqueville
Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville was a French political thinker and historian best known for his Democracy in America and The Old Regime and the Revolution . In both of these works, he explored the effects of the rising equality of social conditions on the individual and the state in...
, George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, Aristotle
Aristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
, and Max Weber
Max Weber
Karl Emil Maximilian "Max" Weber was a German sociologist and political economist who profoundly influenced social theory, social research, and the discipline of sociology itself...
. Lipset received a doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in sociology from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1949. Before that he taught at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
.
Academic career
He was the Caroline S.G. Munro Professor of Political Science and Sociology at Stanford UniversityStanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
(1975–1990) and the George D. Markham Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. He also taught at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
and the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
. Lipset received the MacIver Prize for Political Man
Political Man
Political Man: The Social Bases of Politics is an award winning political science book by Seymour Martin Lipset.The book is an influential analysis of the bases of democracy across the world...
(1960
1960 in literature
The year 1960 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*November 2 – Penguin Books is found not guilty of obscenity in the Lady Chatterley's Lover case in the United Kingdom....
) and the Gunnar Myrdal Prize for The Politics of Unreason. His book The First New Nation was a finalist for the National Book Award
National Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...
. He was also awarded the Townsend Harris
Townsend Harris
Townsend Harris was a successful New York City merchant and minor politician, and the first United States Consul General to Japan...
and Margaret Byrd Dawson Medals for significant achievement, the Northern Telecom-International Council for Canadian Studies Gold Medal, and the Leon Epstein Prize in Comparative Politics by the American Political Science Association
American Political Science Association
The American Political Science Association is a professional association of political science students and scholars in the United States. Founded in 1903, it publishes three academic journals...
. He has received the Marshall Sklare Award for distinction in Jewish studies
Jewish studies
Jewish studies is an academic discipline centered on the study of Jews and Judaism. Jewish studies is interdisciplinary and combines aspects of history , religious studies, archeology, sociology, languages , political science, area studies, women's studies, and ethnic studies...
. In 1997, he was awarded the Helen Dinnerman Prize by the World Association for Public Opinion Research.
Lipset was a member of the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
. He was the only person to have been president of both the American Sociological Association
American Sociological Association
The American Sociological Association , founded in 1905 as the American Sociological Society , is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the discipline and profession of sociology by serving sociologists in their work and promoting their contributions to serve society.The ASA holds its...
(1992–93) and the American Political Science Association
American Political Science Association
The American Political Science Association is a professional association of political science students and scholars in the United States. Founded in 1903, it publishes three academic journals...
(1979–80). He also served as the president of the International Society of Political Psychology, the Sociological Research Association, the World Association for Public Opinion Research, and the Society for Comparative Research. He was also the president of the Paul F. Lazarsfeld Society in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
.
His publications include American Exceptionalism: A Double-Edged Sword (W.W. Norton, 1996) and Continental Divide: The Values and Institutions of the United States and Canada (Routledge, 1990), and with Earl Raab Jews and the New American Scene (Harvard University Press, 1996).
Lipset was active in public affairs on a national level. He was a director of the United States Institute of Peace
United States Institute of Peace
The United States Institute of Peace was created by Congress as a non-partisan, federal institution that works to prevent or end violent conflict around the world...
. He has been a board member of the Albert Shanker Institute
Albert Shanker Institute
The Albert Shanker Institute is a nonprofit foundation dedicated to advancing democratic ideals, improving the quality of public education, and conducting research into the labor movement and the sociology of work...
, a member of the U.S. Board of Foreign Scholarships, co-chair of the Committee for Labor Law Reform, co-chair of the Committee for an Effective UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
, and consultant to the National Endowment for the Humanities
National Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
, the National Humanities Institute, the National Endowment for Democracy
National Endowment for Democracy
The National Endowment for Democracy, or NED, is a U.S. non-profit organization that was founded in 1983 to promote US-friendly democracy by providing cash grants funded primarily through an annual allocation from the U.S. Congress...
, and the American Jewish Committee
American Jewish Committee
The American Jewish Committee was "founded in 1906 with the aim of rallying all sections of American Jewry to defend the rights of Jews all over the world...
.
He was president of the American Professors for Peace in the Middle East, chair of the National B'nai B'rith
B'nai B'rith
B'nai B'rith International |Covenant]]" is the oldest continually operating Jewish service organization in the world. It was initially founded as the Independent Order of B'nai B'rith in New York City, on , 1843, by Henry Jones and 11 others....
Hillel Commission and the Faculty Advisory Cabinet of the United Jewish Appeal
United Jewish Appeal
The United Jewish Appeal was a Jewish philanthropic umbrella organization that existed from its creation in 1949 until it was folded into the United Jewish Communities, which was formed from the 1999 merger of United Jewish Appeal , Council of Jewish Federations and United Israel Appeal, Inc.In...
, and cochair of the Executive Committee of the International Center for Peace in the Middle East. He worked for years on seeking solution for the Israeli Palestinian conflict. This was part of his larger project of researching what factor allow societies to sustain stable and peaceful democracies. His work focused on the preconditions to democracy -- especially high socioeconomic development--(see also Amartya Sen
Amartya Sen
Amartya Sen, CH is an Indian economist who was awarded the 1998 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his contributions to welfare economics and social choice theory, and for his interest in the problems of society's poorest members...
's work)--and the consequences of democracy for peace.
Lipset's first wife, Elsie, died in 1987. With her, he had three children: David, Daniel, and Cici. David Lipset is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
. In addition to his three children, and six grandchildren, Lipset is survived by his second wife, Sydnee, whom he married in 1990.
Besides making substantial contributions to cleavage
Cleavage (politics)
Cleavage in political science is a concept used in voting analysis and is the division of voters into voting blocs.The preliminary assumption is that voters don’t come in predefined groups of pros and cons for or against a certain subject. Ballot analysis assumes that voters opt for a certain...
theory, with his partner Stein Rokkan
Stein Rokkan
Stein Rokkan was a Norwegian political scientist and sociologist. He was a professor in comparative politics at the University of Bergen.-Career and influence:...
, Lipset was one of the first proponents of the "theory of modernization", which holds that democracy is the direct result of economic growth.
Quotes
“The more well-to-do a nation, the greater the chances that it will sustain democracy.”"Those who only know one country know no country."
Works
- Agrarian Socialism: The Cooperative Commonwealth Federation in Saskatchewan, a Study in Political Sociology (1950), ISBN 0520020561 (1972 printing). online edition
- We'll Go Down to Washington (1951).
- Union DemocracyUnion DemocracyUnion Democracy: The Internal Politics of the International Typographical Union is a book by Seymour Martin Lipset, Martin Trow and James S...
with Martin Trow and James S. Coleman. - Social Mobility in Industrial Society with Reinhard BendixReinhard BendixReinhard Bendix was a German American sociologist.Born in Berlin, Germany, he briefly belonged to Neu beginnen and Hashomer Hatzair, groups that resisted the Nazis. In 1938 he emigrated to the United States. He received his B.S., M.A., and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago, and subsequently...
(1959), ISBN 0887387608 online edition - Social Structure and Mobility in Economic Development with Neil J. Smelser (1966), ISBN 0829009108 online edition
- Economic Development and Political Legitimacy (1959).
- Political Man: The Social Bases of PoliticsPolitical ManPolitical Man: The Social Bases of Politics is an award winning political science book by Seymour Martin Lipset.The book is an influential analysis of the bases of democracy across the world...
(1960), ISBN 0385066503. online edition - The First New Nation (1963), ISBN 0393009114 (1980 printing). online edition
- The Berkeley Student Revolt: Facts and Interpretations, edited with Sheldon S. Wolin (1965)
- Student Politics (1967), ISBN 0465082483. online edition
- Revolution and Counterrevolution: Change and Persistence in Social Structures, (1968) ISBN 0887386946 (1988 printing). online version
- Prejudice and Society with Earl Raab.
- The Politics of Unreason: Right Wing Extremism in America, 1790-1970 with Earl Raab (1970), ISBN 0226484572 (1978 printing). online edition
- The Divided Academy: Professors and Politics with Everett Carl Ladd, Jr. (1975), ISBN 0-07-010112-4. online edition
- The Confidence Gap: Business, Labor, and Government in the Public Mind (1987).
- Continental Divide: The Values and Institutions of the United States and Canada (1989).
- Jews and the New American Scene with Earl Raab (1995).
- American Exceptionalism: A Double-Edged Sword (1996).
- It Didn't Happen Here: Why Socialism Failed in the United States with Gary Marks (2001), ISBN 0393322548.
- The Paradox of American Unionism: Why Americans Like Unions More Than Canadians Do, but Join Much Less with Noah Meltz, Rafael Gomez, and Ivan Katchanovski (2004), ISBN 0801442001.
- The Democratic Century with Jason M. Lakin (2004), ISBN 0806136189.
- "Steady Work: An Academic Memoir", in Annual Review of Sociology, Vol. 22, 1996. online version
- "Economic Development and Democracy"
External links
- Biography at the Hoover InstitutionHoover InstitutionThe Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace is a public policy think tank and library founded in 1919 by then future U.S. president, Herbert Hoover, an early alumnus of Stanford....
. - Obituary in the Washington Post.
- Obituary in the Jerusalem Post.
- Obituary, by Metta Spencer, Peace Magazine, April 2007.
- Seymour Martin Lipset interview with Ben Wattenberg (PBSPublic Broadcasting ServiceThe Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
). - Seymour Martin Lipset Memorial Website