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Amit Ron

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School of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Associate Professor
Faculty, WEST Campus, Mailcode 3051
Affiliate Faculty, Center for the Study of Religion and Conflict
Assoc Professor
Faculty, WEST Campus, Mailcode 3051
Biography: 

Amit Ron’s is an associate professor in the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences. His research focuses around two central themes: the political and normative dimensions of the history of political economy, and the democratic theory of the public sphere.

With regard to the democratic theory of the public sphere, Ron is particularly interested in the role of the public in the cognitive division of labor that is required for a social scientific inquiry. His most recent publication, “Affected Interests and Their Institutions” (Democratic Theory, 2017), looks at way to think about the meaning of the democratic demos in a transnational environment. To do so, the article examines practices of inclusion and exclusion in different areas of law and public administration.

In collaboration with Abraham Singer from  the Quinlan School of Business at Loyola University Chicago, Ron is currently working on a project, provisionally entitled “The Social Subcontract: A Pragmatist Approach to Business Ethics and Democracy,” that examines business ethics from the point of view of democratic theory. Broadly speaking, most works in this area treat business ethics as a branch of applied moral philosophy. Thus, they focus on deriving rules for doing business from general approaches to ethics such as Kantianism, consequentialism, or virtue ethics. In this way of approaching business ethics, little attention is made to the economic context, or the political institutions, in which business operate. In contrast, our project puts such institutions at the center. The question that we ask is this: what responsibilities do competitive profit-seeking businesses have toward the democratic environments in which they operate? We explore the many ways in which business activity interacts with democratic institutions, procedures, and norms, and the ethical dilemmas that these interactions generate.

Education: 
  • Ph.D. University of Minnesota-Minneapolis 2004
  • B.A. Tel Aviv Unviersity 1995
Google Scholar URL: 
Google Scholar Profile
Research Interests: 

See http://sites.google.com/site/amitronsite/

 

Publications: 

Edited Books:

  • Amit Ron and Majia Nadesan (eds.), Mapping Populism: Approaches and Methods. London and New York: Routledge. 2020. ISBN: 978-0-367-27144-2.

Articles and Book Chapters:

  • Abraham Singer and Amit Ron, “Prioritizing Democracy: A Commentary on Smith’s Presidential Address to the Society for Business Ethics,” Business Ethics Quarterly,  doi 10.1017/beq.2019.3
  • Amit Ron and Abraham Singer, “Democracy, Corruption, and the Ethics of Business Lobbying,” Interest Groups & Advocacy, vol. 9 (2020): 38-56, doi:10.1057/s41309-019-00073-w.
  • Abraham Singer and Amit Ron, “Models of Shareholder Democracy: a Transnational Approach,” Global Constitutionalism, vol. 4, no. 3 (2018): 422-446, doi: 10.1017/S2045381718000126.
  • Amit Ron, 2017, Affected Interests and Their Institutions, Democratic Theory Vol. 4, no. 2, 66-81, doi: 10.3167/dt.2017.040205.
  • Amit Ron, Narratives of Participatory Governance: Social Science and Democracy in Bevir’s A Theory of Governance, International Journal of Organization Theory and Behavior, vol. 19, no. 3, 372-388 (2016). Part of a symposium on Mark Bevir’s A Theory of Governance, doi: 10.1108/IJOTB-19-03-2016-B006.
  • Galit Cohen-Blankshtain, Amit Ron, and Alam Gadot-Perez. When an NGO takes on public participation: preparing a plan for a neighborhood in East Jerusalem. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research (2013), doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2427.2012.01174.x
  • Amit Ron. Forms of Democratic Governance. Oxford Handbook of Governance (2012), doi: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199560530.013.0033.
  • Amit Ron. The Public in Public Peace Processes and in Mini-Publics: a Dialogue between Democratic Theory and Peace Studies. Peace and Conflict Studies (2010), link.
  • Amit Ron. Peace Negotiations and Peace Talks: the Peace Process in the Public Sphere. The International Journal of Peace Studies (2009), link.
  • Amit Ron. Citizens’ Participation in Electoral Reforms: the Canadian Model and its Applicability to Israel Politika [in Hebrew],vo. 18 (Fall 2008): 117-140. Politika (2008).
  • Amit Ron. Modern Natural Law Meets the Market: the Case of Adam Smith , vol. 7, no. 2 (2008): 117-136. European Journal of Political Theory (2008), doi: 10.1177/1474885107086444
  • Amit Ron. Power: A Pragmatist, Deliberative (and Radical) View. Journal of Political Philosophy (2008), doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9760.2008.00305.x.
  • Amit Ron. Visions of Democracy in ‘Property-Owning Democracy:’ Skelton to Rawls and Beyond. History of Political Thought (2008), link.
  • Amit Ron. Rawls as a Critical Theorist: Reflective Equilibrium after the ‘Deliberative Turn. Philosophy and Social Criticism, vol. 32, no.2 (March 2006), 173-191, doi: 10.1177/0191453706061091.
  • Amit Ron. The ‘Market’ and the ‘Forum’ in Hobbes’s Political Philosophy , vol. 38, no. 2 (April 2006), 235-253. Polity (2006), link.
  • Amit Ron, “Regression Analysis and the Philosophy of Social Sciences – a Critical Realist View.”  Journal of Critical Realism, vol. 1, no. 1, November 2002, 115-36, doi: 10.1558/jocr.v1i1.119.  Reprinted in Realist Methodology (SAGE Benchmarks in Social Research Methods series), vol. 2, ed. Wendy Olsen, 2010.

Book Reviews:

  • Amit Ron, ‘Not in Their Name: Are Citizens Culpable For Their States’ Actions? By Holly Lawford-Smith. - The People’s Duty: Collective Agency and the Morality of Public Policy. By Shmuel Nili. (book review),’ Perspectives on Politics, vol. 18, no. 2 (2020), 592-4, doi: 10.1017/S1537592720000572

  • Amit Ron, ‘Measuring Justice: Primary Goods and Capabilities,’ edited by Harry Brighouse and Ingrid Robeyns (book review),' Perspectives on Politics, vol. 10, no. 2 (2012), 482-3, doi: 10.1017/S153759271200045X

  • Amit Ron, ‘Quentin Skinner: History, Politics, Rhetoric, by Kari Palonen,’ Constellations, vol. 14, no. 1 (2007), 150-153, doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8675.2007.00427_2.x

  • Amit Ron, ‘Stories of Peoplehood: The Politics and Morals of Political Membership’Membership by Rogers M. Smith,’ Hamerhav Haziburi (the Public Sphere), vol.1 (2007), 167-170  [in Hebrew].

  • Amit Ron, ‘Adam Smith in Context: A Critical Reassessment of Some Central Components of his Thought, by Leonidas Montes,’ Journal of Critical Realism, vol. 4, no. 2 (2005), 487-490, doi: 10.1558/jocr.v4i2.487.

Encyclopedia and Dictionary Articles:

  • Amit Ron, 2018.“Consensus,” Bloomsbury Handbook to Literary and Cultural Theory (ed. Jeffrey R. Di Leo), pp. 416-7 (650 words).
  • Amit Ron, 2014, “Citizen / Citizenship,” The Encyclopedia of Political Thought, (ed. in chief Michael Gibbons), Wiley Blackwell (4,000 words), doi: 10.1002/9781118474396.wbept0144
  • Amit Ron, 2013, “Power,” Encyclopedia of Modern Political Thought, CQ Press, ed. Gregory Claeys (750 words), doi: 10.4135/9781452234168.n257.

Other:

  • Amit Ron and Majia Nadesan. 2020. “Populist Covid-19 Narratives: Populist Threat or Democratic Antidote?” Public Jurist (November 2020), 17–23 (link).
  • Tyrone Reitman and Amit Ron. 2019. “A Position Paper: Citizens Redistricting Review: towards a New Gold Standard of Redistricting Reform.” Policy Jury Group, September 26, 2019, link.

 

Fall 2021
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 446Democracy
POS 492Honors Directed Study
JHR 598Special Topics
Summer 2021
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 160Global Politics
POS 210Political Ideologies
Spring 2021
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 446Democracy
JHR 584Internship
MAS 585Capstone Course
Fall 2020
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
Summer 2020
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 160Global Politics
POS 210Political Ideologies
Spring 2020
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 446Democracy
Fall 2019
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 493Honors Thesis
POS 499Individualized Instruction
Summer 2019
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 260Curr Issues in Intl Politics
Spring 2019
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 446Democracy
POS 492Honors Directed Study
POS 494Special Topics
Fall 2018
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 160Global Politics
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 494Special Topics
POS 499Individualized Instruction
Summer 2018
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 260Curr Issues in Intl Politics
POS 494Special Topics
Spring 2018
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 446Democracy
POS 494Special Topics
Fall 2017
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 160Global Politics
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 494Special Topics
Summer 2017
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 260Curr Issues in Intl Politics
POS 499Individualized Instruction
Spring 2017
Course NumberCourse Title
POS 210Political Ideologies
POS 446Democracy
Presentations: 
  • Abraham Singer and Amit Ron. Models of Corporate Democracy: a Transnational Approach. Association for Political Theory, Annual Meeting (Oct 2014).
  • Amit Ron, David Wells, and Tanya Musgrave. Citizens’ Participation in Redistricting Processes: Theory and Policy. Annual Meeting of the Western Political Science Association (Mar 2013).
  • Amit Ron. Peace Negotiations and Peace Talks: the Peace Process in the Public Sphere. Conference on War and Peace as Liberal Arts (Feb 2013).
  • Amit Ron. The Institutions of the "All Affected Interests". Annual Meeting of the Association for Political Theory (Oct 2012).
  • Amit Ron. Forms of Democratic Governance. Seminar Series 2011-2012. Participatory Governance Initiative, School of Public Affairs, ASU (Jan 2012).
  • Amit Ron. Panel on "The Limits of Market Reasoning.". Annual meeting of the Association for Political Theory, College Station, TX, (Oct 2009).
  • Amit Ron. Notes towards a Democratic Philosophy of Social Science. Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association (Toronto, ON) (Sep 2009).
  • Amit Ron. The "Public" in "Public Peace Process" and in "Mini-Publics:" a Dialogue between Democratic Theory and Peace Studies. Annual Meeting of the Western Political Science Association (Vancouver, BC) (Mar 2009).
  • Amit Ron. Panel on "Holies New and Old." March 2-3, 2009. Conference on "Holy Sites and Holy Wars in the Middle East." (Mar 2009).
  • Amit Ron. Panel on "Is ‘Political Science’ an Oxymoron?". Annual Meeting of the Southern Political Science Association (New Orleans, LA) (Jan 2009).
  • Amit Ron. Power and Deliberations: a Stylized Survey. Annual Meeting of the Southern Political Science Association (Jan 2009).
  • Amit Ron. Roundtable: Reflecting on Mark Bevir's Logic of the History of Ideas, Ten Years Later. Annual Meeting of the Southern Political Science Association (Jan 2009).
  • Amit Ron. Power and Deliberations: a Stylized Survey. Fellows’ Seminar, Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto (Feb 2008).
  • Amit Ron. Democratic Deliberations and Critical Inquiry: Israeli Society the Oslo Peace Process. Fellows' Seminar, Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto (Mar 2007).
  • Amit Ron. Power: a Pragmatist, Deliberative (and Radical) View. 14th Annual Critical Theory Roundtable (Oct 2006).
  • Amit Ron. Natural Law Meets the Market: the Case of Adam Smith. Conference on Adam Smith’s The Theory of Moral Sentiments,Rochester Institute of Technology (May 2006).
Service: 
  • Fellows' Seminar, Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto, discussant (2008 - Present)
  • Annual Meeting of the Association for Political Theory (London, ON), discussant (2007 - Present)
  • The Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, panel organizer and chair (2007 - Present)
  • Public Issues Forum, Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto, organizer and chair (2007 - Present)
  • Public Issues Forum, Centre for Ethics, University of Toronto, organizer and chair (2006 - Present)
  • Valley Beth Midrash and ASU’s Center for Jewish Studies., Panelist (2012 - 2012)
  • School of Humanities, Arts, and Cultural Studies., Speaker (2012 - 2012)
  • Temple Chai, Phoenix, Panelist (2009 - 2009)
Expertise Areas: 
Economic Justice
Democratic Theory
Citizen Participation
Civil Communication
Philosophy of Science
Political Theory
History of Political Thought