Topic · Critical Theory and Philosophy
Most cited papers in Critical Theory and Philosophy
What are the most cited papers in Critical Theory and Philosophy?
The most cited paper in Critical Theory and Philosophy is "Modernization and Postmodernization: Cultural, Economic, and Political Change in 43 Societies" (Francis Fukuyama, Ronald Inglehart, 1997), with 4,848 citations. Next come "Rethinking Critical Theory and Qualitative Research" (2,560) and "The theory of communicative action" (2,296).
Showing 50 of 100 papers. Every paper with more than 276 citations is listed.
| # | Paper | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Modernization and Postmodernization: Cultural, Economic, and Political Change in 43 Societies Francis Fukuyama, Ronald Inglehart · Foreign Affairs | 1997 | 4,848 |
| 2 | Rethinking Critical Theory and Qualitative Research Joe L. Kincheloe, Peter L. McLaren · SensePublishers eBooks | 2011 | 2,560 |
| 3 | The theory of communicative action Andrew Edgar | 30 Jun 2005 | 2,296 |
| 4 | 61. The Saturated Self: Dilemmas of Identity in Contemporary Life Kenneth J. Gergen · Princeton University Press eBooks | 29 Jul 2015 | 2,226 |
| 5 | One-Dimensional Man Timothy W. Luke · Organization & Environment | Mar 2000 | 1,881 |
| 6 | Gramsci, Hegemony and International Relations : An Essay in Method Robert W. Cox · Millennium Journal of International Studies | Jun 1983 | 1,486 |
| 7 | The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism Marek Loužek · Politická ekonomie | Oct 2010 | 1,333 |
| 8 | Habermas and the Public Sphere David Harrington Watt, Craig Jackson Calhoun · Sociological Analysis | 1992 | 1,312 |
| 9 | The Oversocialized Conception of Man in Modern Sociology Dennis H. Wrong · American Sociological Review | Apr 1961 | 1,309 |
| 10 | Deliberative Democracy or Agonistic Pluralism? Chantal Mouffe | 6 Jan 2026 | 1,297 |
| 11 | Being Human: The Problem of Agency Ulf Himmelstrand, Margaret Scotford Archer · Contemporary Sociology A Journal of Reviews | May 2002 | 1,292 |
| 12 | The “Actors” of Modern Society: The Cultural Construction of Social Agency John W. Meyer, Ronald L. Jepperson · Sociological Theory | Mar 2000 | 1,221 |
| 13 | Authority and Estrangement: An Essay on Self‐Knowledge Richard Eldridge · Philosophical Investigations | Oct 2003 | 1,067 |
| 14 | Activist Challenges to Deliberative Democracy Iris Marion Young · Political Theory | Oct 2001 | 1,000 |
| 15 | Survey Article: Recipes for Public Spheres: Eight Institutional Design Choices and Their Consequences Archon Fung · Journal of Political Philosophy | 4 Aug 2003 | 997 |
| 16 | COMMUNITY AND CIVIL SOCIETY Ferdinand Tönnies · Cambridge University Press eBooks | 2 Jul 2001 | 880 |
| 17 | The Force of Things Jane Foress Bennett · Political Theory | 27 May 2004 | 858 |
| 18 | Survey Article: The Coming of Age of Deliberative Democracy James F. Bohman · Journal of Political Philosophy | Dec 1998 | 825 |
| 19 | Sylvia Wynter: On Being Human As Praxis Kaiama L. Glover · Contemporary Women s Writing | 6 Jan 2016 | 824 |
| 20 | World Society, Institutional Theories, and the Actor John W. Meyer · Annual Review of Sociology | Jun 2010 | 818 |
| 21 | On social movements and culture Ron Eyerman, Andrew Jamison · Cambridge University Press eBooks | 28 Feb 1998 | 809 |
| 22 | Social Acceleration: Ethical and Political Consequences of a Desynchronized High–Speed Society Hartmut Rosa · Constellations | Mar 2003 | 767 |
| 23 | Communications: Blindspot of Western Marxism Dallas W. Smythe · Ctheory | 30 Dec 1977 | 740 |
| 24 | Racial Europeanization David Theo Goldberg · Ethnic and Racial Studies | 7 Feb 2006 | 739 |
| 25 | Karl Marx's theory of history: A defense Benjamin C. Sax · History of European Ideas | 1985 | 700 |
| 26 | Pluralism and Reasonable Disagreement Charles Larmore · DigitalGeorgetown (Georgetown University Library) | Dec 1994 | 692 |
| 27 | On Critique: A Sociology of Emancipation Andrew Sayer · Contemporary Sociology A Journal of Reviews | 26 Oct 2012 | 665 |
| 28 | The cosmopolitan perspective: sociology of the second age of modernity* Ulrich Beck · British Journal of Sociology | Mar 2000 | 641 |
| 29 | Community, Citizenship, and the third Way Nikolas Rose · American Behavioral Scientist | Jun 2000 | 624 |
| 30 | Risking Ourselves in Education: Qualification, Socialization, and Subjectification Revisited Gert Biesta · Educational Theory | Feb 2020 | 597 |
| 31 | Disgusted Subjects: The Making of Middle-Class Identities Stephanie Lawler · The Sociological Review | 29 Jul 2005 | 591 |
| 32 | Rhetoric and the Public Sphere Simone Chambers · Political Theory | 18 Feb 2009 | 566 |
| 33 | Power in Transition: An Interdisciplinary Framework to Study Power in Relation to Structural Change Flor Avelino, Joris I. Rotmans · European Journal of Social Theory | Nov 2009 | 550 |
| 34 | Ideology, Racism, and Critical Social Theory Tommie Shelby · The Philosophical Forum | 30 May 2003 | 547 |
| 35 | Resisting Reality: Social Construction and Social Critique María Salas Root · Analysis | Jul 2013 | 531 |
| 36 | Relational Autonomy, Liberal Individualism, and the Social Constitution of Selves John Philip Christman · Philosophical Studies | 2004 | 509 |
| 37 | On the Use of the Mass Media as "Escape": Clarification of a Concept Elihu Katz, David Mayer Foulkes · Public Opinion Quarterly | 1962 | 506 |
| 38 | Jürgen Habermas: Theorie des kommunikativen Handelns. Bd. 1: Handlungsrationalität und gesellschaftliche Rationalisierung; Bd. 2: Zur Kritik der funktionalistischen Vernunft, Suhrkamp: Frankfurt 1981, 533 + 632 S Wilhelm Hofmann · Klassiker der Sozialwissenschaften | 2016 | 505 |
| 39 | A Problem-Based Approach to Democratic Theory Mark E. Warren · American Political Science Review | Feb 2017 | 475 |
| 40 | Why conversation is not the soul of democracy Michael S. Schudson · Critical Studies in Mass Communication | Dec 1997 | 468 |
| 41 | Perfectionist Liberalism and Political Liberalism Martha C. Nussbaum · Philosophy & Public Affairs | 2011 | 458 |
| 42 | Power after Hegemony Scott M. Lash · Theory Culture & Society | 26 Apr 2007 | 456 |
| 43 | Survey Article: Deliberation, Democracy, and the Systemic Turn David Andrew Owen, Graham R. Smith · Journal of Political Philosophy | 17 Apr 2015 | 440 |
| 44 | Legitimation Crisis? On the Political Contradictions of Financialized Capitalism Nancy Wickwire Fraser · Critical Historical Studies | Sep 2015 | 431 |
| 45 | Recognition and Justice Axel Honneth · Acta Sociologica | Dec 2004 | 408 |
| 46 | Self as Enterprise Lois McNay · Theory Culture & Society | Nov 2009 | 399 |
| 47 | On the Site of Distributive Justice: Reflections on Cohen and Murphy Thomas W Pogge · Philosophy & Public Affairs | Apr 2000 | 398 |
| 48 | Ontology Is Just Another Word for Culture Michael B. Carrithers, Matei Candea, Karen M. Sykes et al. · Critique of Anthropology | 28 May 2010 | 396 |
| 49 | Personal identity and the unity of agency: A Kantian response to Parfit Christine M. Korsgaard · Cambridge University Press eBooks | 28 Jul 1996 | 395 |
| 50 | Philosophy of the Encounter: Later Writings 1978–1987 Jason Read · Contemporary Political Theory | 25 Oct 2007 | 393 |
Citations are OpenAlex's own counts, from its 2026-09-23 snapshot, so the ranking can differ from Google Scholar or Web of Science. A paper is listed for a field when OpenAlex files it under one of the field's topics; retracted papers and papers whose citation count cannot be traced to citing works are left out, and a preprint and the article it became are shown once. Release dates are OpenAlex's: where a source gave only a month or a year, that is what is shown. How the lists are chosen.