Harold Wilensky

Harold L. Wilensky (1923–2011) was a professor of sociology and political science for more than 50 years at the University of California, Berkeley. He previous taught at the University of Michigan, served in World War II, and earned his PhD in sociology from the University of Chicago. Wilensky made major contributions to understanding the impact of industrial transformation on the structure, culture, and politics of modern society. He was a pioneer in the study of the welfare state and social policy, the intellectual life of labor unions, and the structural and ideological roots of intelligence failures in government and industry. He produced 75 articles and 13 books, including American Political Economy in Global Perspective (2012), Rich Democracies (2002), and Industrial Society and Social Welfare (1958). Wilensky was a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences.