Steffen Mau
Sociologist
Steffen Mau, born in Rostock, is one of Germany’s most renowned sociologists and sought-after expert on societal developments. In his highly acclaimed books as well as his many academic and media articles (including for the FAZ and Die Zeit), he explores processes of societal transformation. His research focuses on inequality research, conflict research, comparative welfare state research, the sociology of borders, and digitalization.
After completing an apprenticeship as an electronics technician at VEB Schiffselektronik Rostock, Steffen Mau studied sociology and political science at Freie Universität Berlin and obtained his doctorate in 2001 from the European University Institute in Florence. From 2005, he was Professor of Political Sociology in Bremen; in 2015, he accepted a position at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. He has held visiting professorships and fellowships at Sciences Po in Paris and Harvard University. From 2012 to 2018, he was a member of the Scientific Commission of the German Science and Humanities Council. Since 2026, he has been director of the Max Planck Institute for Political and Social Science in Göttingen. Steffen Mau is an Honorary Fellow at the Thomas Mann House.
Selected Awards
2026 | In_equality Research Award 2026
2025 | Award for Outstanding Achievements in the Field of Public Impact of Sociology from the German Sociological Association (DGS)
2024 | Bavarian Book Prize for Ungleich vereint: Warum der Osten anders bleibt
2024 | “Das politische Buch” (The Political Book) Award from the Friedrich Ebert Foundation for Triggerpunkte: Konsens und Konflikt der Gegenwartsgesellschaft
2023 | “Gegen Vergessen – Für Demokratie” (Against Forgetting – For Democracy) Award
2023 | Communicator Award from the Stifterverband and the German Research Foundation (DFG)
2023 | Schader-Preis from the Schader Foundation Darmstadt
2021 | Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize from the German Research Foundation (DFG)
Selected Publications
2026 | with Thomas Lux and Linus Westheuser. Trigger Points: Inequality and Political Polarization in Contemporary Society. Bristol: Bristol University Press.
2025 | with Ricarda Lang. Der große Umbruch: Ein Gespräch über Krisen, Konflikte und Kompromisse. Berlin: Ullstein.
2024 | Ungleich vereint: Warum der Osten anders bleibt. Berlin: Suhrkamp.
2022 | Sorting Machines: The Re-Invention of the Border in the 21st Century. Cambridge: Polity Press.
2019 | Lütten Klein: Leben in der ostdeutschen Transformationsgesellschaft. Berlin: Suhrkamp.
2019 | The Metric Society: On the Quantification of the Social. Cambridge: Polity Press.