World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
Award Badge
Political Science
Germany
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Political Science

D-Index
51
Citations
27404
World Ranking
208
National Ranking
11

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Political Science in Germany Leader Award
  • 2015 - German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina - Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften Economics and Empirical Social Sciences

Overview

Christian Welzel is affiliated with Leuphana University of Lüneburg in Germany. Their research spans the fields of social sciences and psychology, with specific focus areas including sociology and political science, social psychology, political science and international relations, demography, and economics and econometrics.

The primary topics of their work cover cultural differences and values, social and intergroup psychology, religion and society interactions, culture, economy and development studies, social and cultural dynamics, social capital and networks, and political conflict and governance.

Welzel's frequent coauthors include Lennart Brunkert, Stefan Kruse, Steven A. Brieger, Plamen Akaliyski, and Michael Minkov.

Notable publication venues for Welzel include:

  • Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology
  • Sociological Methods & Research
  • Journal of democracy
  • Journal of Happiness Studies
  • Zeitschrift für Vergleichende Politikwissenschaft

Some of the recent papers authored or coauthored by Welzel are:

  • Non-invariance? An Overstated Problem With Misconceived Causes, 2021, Sociological Methods & Research
  • Democratic Horizons: what value change reveals about the future of democracy, 2021, Democratization
  • Why The Future Is Democratic, 2021, Journal of democracy

The scientist has published a book titled The Cool Water Effect, scheduled for release in 2025 by Springer International Publishing.

Christian Welzel was awarded membership in the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina - Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina - Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften in 2015 within the field of Economics and Empirical Social Sciences.

Best Publications

  • Modernization, Cultural Change, and Democracy: The Human Development Sequence

    Ronald Inglehart;Christian Peter Welzel

  • Modernization, Cultural Change, and Democracy: THE CONSEQUENCES OF VALUE CHANGE

    Unknown

  • Development, Freedom, and Rising Happiness: A Global Perspective (1981–2007)

    Ronald Inglehart;Roberto Foa;Christopher Peterson;Christian Welzel

  • Changing Mass Priorities: The Link between Modernization and Democracy

    Ronald Inglehart;Christian Welzel

  • Freedom Rising: Human Empowerment and the Quest for Emancipation

    Christian Welzel

  • How General Is Trust in “Most People”? Solving the Radius of Trust Problem

    Jan Delhey;Kenneth Newton;Christian Welzel

  • The theory of human development: A cross-cultural analysis

    Christian Welzel;Ronald Inglehart;Hans-Dieter Kligemann

  • Freedom Rising

    Unknown

  • The China Puzzle: Falling Happiness in a Rising Economy

    Hilke Brockmann;Jan Delhey;Christian Welzel;Hao Yuan

  • Gender Equality and Democracy

    Ronald Inglehart;Pippa Norris;Christian Peter Welzel

  • Dimensions and Dynamics of National Culture: Synthesizing Hofstede With Inglehart

    Sjoerd Beugelsdijk;Chris Welzel

  • Agency, Values, and Well-Being: A Human Development Model

    Christian Welzel;Ronald Inglehart

  • The Role of Ordinary People in Democratization

    Christian Welzel;Ronald Inglehart

  • The Civic Culture Transformed: From Allegiant To Assertive Citizens

    Christian Welzel;Russell J. Dalton

  • Social Capital, Voluntary Associations and Collective Action: Which Aspects of Social Capital Have the Greatest 'Civic' Payoff?

    Christian Welzel;Ronald Inglehart;Franziska Deutsch

  • Islam and patriarchy: how robust is Muslim support for patriarchal values?

    Amy Catherine Alexander;Christian Welzel

  • Basic Personal Values Underlie and Give Coherence to Political Values: A Cross National Study in 15 Countries

    Shalom H. Schwartz;Shalom H. Schwartz;Gian Vittorio Caprara;Michele Vecchione;Paul G. Bain

  • How Selfish Are Self-Expression Values? A Civicness Test:

    Christian Peter Welzel

  • Empowering Women: The Role of Emancipative Forces in Board Gender Diversity

    Steven A. Brieger;Steven A. Brieger;Claude Francoeur;Christian Welzel;Christian Welzel;Walid Ben-Amar

  • Personal values and political activism: A cross‐national study

    Michele Vecchione;Shalom H. Schwartz;Shalom H. Schwartz;Gian Vittorio Caprara;Harald Schoen

  • How development leads to democracy

    Ronald Inglehart;Christian Welzel

  • Liberalism, Postmaterialism, and the Growth of Freedom

    Christian Welzel;Ronald Inglehart

  • Are Levels of Democracy Affected by Mass Attitudes? Testing Attainment and Sustainment Effects on Democracy

    Christian Welzel

  • Emancipative Values and Non-Violent Protest: The Importance of ‘Ecological’ Effects

    Christian Welzel;Franziska Deutsch

  • Democratization as an emancipative process: The neglected role of mass motivations

    Christian Welzel

  • The Civic Culture Transformed

    Russell Dalton;Christian Welzel

  • How Development Leads to Democracy: What We Know About Modernization

    Ronald F. Inglehart;Ronald F. Inglehart;Christian Welzel

  • Democracy Misunderstood: Authoritarian Notions of Democracy around the Globe

    Helen Kirsch;Christian Peter Welzel

  • Political Culture and Democracy: Analyzing Crosslevel Linkages

    Ronald F. Inglehart;Ronald F. Inglehart;Christian Welzel

Frequent Co-Authors

Ronald Inglehart
Ronald Inglehart University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
Shalom H. Schwartz
Shalom H. Schwartz Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Russell J. Dalton
Russell J. Dalton University of California, Irvine
Paul G. Bain
Paul G. Bain University of Bath
Jan Cieciuch
Jan Cieciuch University of Zurich
Markku Verkasalo
Markku Verkasalo University of Helsinki
Michele Vecchione
Michele Vecchione Sapienza University of Rome
Guido Alessandri
Guido Alessandri Sapienza University of Rome
Pippa Norris
Pippa Norris Harvard University
Jan-Erik Lönnqvist
Jan-Erik Lönnqvist University of Helsinki

If you think any of the details on this page are incorrect, let us know.

Report an issue

We appreciate your kind effort to assist us to improve this page, it would be helpful providing us with as much detail as possible in the text box below:

Related Online Degrees & Career Pathways

Exploring Political Science in the USA opens a world of flexible learning and career options. Many students begin by pursuing programs at an affordable online college to keep tuition costs low while receiving a quality education.

For those aiming to advance their qualifications quickly, enrolling in the cheapest fastest masters degree programs can be a smart pathway. These accelerated options allow you to gain advanced political science knowledge and boost your credentials in less time.

In addition to degrees, there are many certification programs available online. Certifications can enhance your résumé in specialized areas such as public policy or international relations—often at a lower cost and with a faster turnaround.

Graduates in Political Science also have diverse career routes to explore. Some may be inspired by the top paying jobs for environmental science majors, which frequently intersect with political advocacy, policy analysis, or government agency roles.

Choosing the right educational and professional pathway depends on your interests, career goals, and budget.

Best Scientists Citing Christian Welzel

Trending Scientists