Economics and Political Science
Economic action does not take place in a vacuum. It is always embedded in a context of historical processes, power and institutional relations. Taking this into account in theorising and for economic policies is challenging but inevitable if economic theory should gain practical relevance.
This position is repeatedly reflected in different facets in research and teaching of Torsten Niechoj. Inherently a political scientist, he combines a governance perspective with economic questions.
He has studied political science, economics and philosophy at the RWTH Aachen and the Philipps-University Marburg. In Marburg, he got his PhD, supported by a stipend of the Hans-Böckler Foundation, in 2002 for his work on the role of collective actors in fostering economic performance.
Before joining the Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, he has done research for more than ten years at the Georg-August University of Göttingen and two applied research institutes, the Institute for Economic and Social Research (WSI) and the Macroeconomic Policy Institute (IMK). Most recently he was head of division for international economic developments and economic policies at the IMK. From 1999-2012, he has repeatedly offered courses at the universities of Marburg, Göttingen and Düsseldorf. Then as now, he has dealt in research and teaching with current account imbalances in the euro area and the impact of the EU on national fiscal constitutions – and vice versa. Further foci of his work are theories of action and institutions as well as digital production.
He is a co-founder and lead editor of the peer-reviewed journal 'European Journal of Economics and Economic Policies: Intervention (EJEEP)', which serves as a forum for studies in macroeconomic theory, economic institutions and economic policies. Additionally, he is a member of the steering committee of the research network Forum for Macroeconomics and Macroeconomic Policies (FMM), established in 1996, and a research fellow of the network. He is also liaison professor of the Hans Boeckler Foundation.
Since March 2012, Torsten Niechoj is a professor of economics and political science at Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, located at the university’s campus in Kamp-Lintfort. Moreover, he is a member of the university’s senate and the commission for planning and structure.
A list of publications can be found here.