b. 1929
Jürgen Habermas is a German philosopher and sociologist, widely regarded as the most important intellectual in Germany in the second half of the twentieth century. A key figure in the Frankfurt School's second generation, he developed the theory of communicative action and discourse ethics, fundamentally reshaping debates in social theory, democratic theory, and the philosophy of language.
Developed the theory of communicative action as a foundation for social theory and rationality
Formulated discourse ethics as a proceduralist approach to moral reasoning
Articulated the concept of the public sphere and its structural transformation
Advanced deliberative democracy theory and cosmopolitan governance
Critiqued positivism and scientism through his theory of knowledge-constitutive interests