SOCIOLOGIST

Robert Michels

1876 - 1936

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Robert Michels (German: [ˈmɪçəls]; 9 January 1876 – 3 May 1936) was a German-born Italian sociologist who contributed to elite theory by describing the political behavior of intellectual elites. He belonged to the Italian school of elitism. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Robert Michels has received more than 316,519 page views. His biography is available in 29 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 28 in 2019). Robert Michels is the 23rd most popular sociologist (up from 24th in 2019), the 1,100th most popular biography from Germany (down from 951st in 2019) and the 5th most popular German Sociologist.

Robert Michels is most famous for his theory of the iron law of oligarchy. Michels argued that all organizations, regardless of their stated goals, will eventually be dominated by a small group of people who will use their power to promote their own interests.

Memorability Metrics

  • 320k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 60.96

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 29

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 8.31

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 2.11

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Among SOCIOLOGISTS

Among sociologists, Robert Michels ranks 23 out of 79. Before him are Manuel Castells, Pitirim Sorokin, Alain Touraine, Peter L. Berger, Paul Lazarsfeld, and C. Wright Mills. After him are Thomas Luckmann, Daniel Bell, Ziya Gökalp, Saskia Sassen, Robert E. Park, and Howard S. Becker.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1876, Robert Michels ranks 41. Before him are Wied, Prince of Albania, Jean Webster, Rodolphe Seeldrayers, Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Duke Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and Ivan Cankar. After him are Walter Sydney Adams, Arthur Moeller van den Bruck, Princess Maria of Greece and Denmark, Ziya Gökalp, Ivan Bilibin, and Fevzi Çakmak. Among people deceased in 1936, Robert Michels ranks 46. Before him are Julius Schreck, Henry Louis Le Chatelier, Heinrich Rickert, Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Marcel Grossmann, and José Sanjurjo. After him are Wilhelm Gustloff, Ahmet Tevfik Pasha, Bertha Pappenheim, Duan Qirui, Alexander Berkman, and Carl Stumpf.

Others Born in 1876

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Others Deceased in 1936

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In Germany

Among people born in Germany, Robert Michels ranks 1,100 out of 7,253. Before him are Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha (1601), Karl-Heinz Schnellinger (1939), Max Klinger (1857), Alfred Brehm (1829), Philip Johan von Strahlenberg (1676), and Louis II, Duke of Bavaria (1229). After him are Wilhelm Gustloff (1895), Countess Palatine Dorothea Sophie of Neuburg (1670), Charles I Louis, Elector Palatine (1617), Veit Stoss (1450), Lothar von Richthofen (1894), and Gottfried Feder (1883).

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Among SOCIOLOGISTS In Germany

Among sociologists born in Germany, Robert Michels ranks 5. Before him are Max Weber (1864), Theodor W. Adorno (1903), Georg Simmel (1858), and Niklas Luhmann (1927). After him are Andre Gunder Frank (1929), Amitai Etzioni (1929), Juan José Linz (1926), Lewis A. Coser (1913), Claus Offe (1940), and Louis Wirth (1897).

German born Sociologists

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