Herbert Obinger

Herbert Obinger is a Professor and Head of the Department of Political Economy of the Welfare State at the University of Bremen's SOCIUM Research Center on Inequality and Social Policy. He also leads the 'Historical and Comparative Welfare State Research' working group. His research focuses on global welfare state dynamics, Cold War impacts on social policies, military influences on welfare development, and small open economies' welfare systems.

Key projects include analyzing welfare state constitutions in global contexts, studying universal conscription's role in welfare development, and examining state retreat from entrepreneurial activities in OECD countries. He has led major DFG-funded initiatives such as the Sonderforschungsbereich 1342 (2018–2021) and SFB 597 (2003–2014). His work bridges historical institutionalism with contemporary policy analysis, emphasizing war's role in welfare state formation and Cold War-era policy competition.

Obinger has published extensively on social policy origins, including works on warfare and welfare linkages, functionalism in policy theory, and global social policy dynamics. His international collaborations include comparative studies between East and West Germany during the Cold War and analyses of Swiss political systems. He actively participates in conferences and lectures globally, focusing on historical and contemporary welfare state challenges.