Dr. Kapteina as Visiting Scholar at the Wharton School

From July to October 2025, Dr. Benedikt D. S. Kapteina, Postdoctoral Fellow at the Chair of Business Administration, esp. Responsible Management, at IHI Zittau, was a Visiting Scholar at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. The Wharton School is one of the most renowned and internationally leading business schools, consistently ranked among the top three worldwide. He was invited by Eric Orts and Kevin Werbach. Both are faculty members of the Department of Legal Studies & Business Ethics, which uniquely integrates business, law, ethics, and politics and is recognized as one of the world’s leading centers for research in this field.

The focus of his stay was the further development of the concept of Corporate Democratic Action (CDA). This research addresses the question of why and under what conditions companies actively defend democracy when it comes under pressure. The research stay laid the foundation for a new project on Corporate Democratic Action in the United States, which will directly contribute to his habilitation efforts. First results were already presented in discussions at Wharton and are expected to lead to publications and international collaborations.

“Wharton offered me an excellent environment and opened doors to global research perspectives. It was especially motivating to advance my work in Philadelphia, a central site of American democracy where the Constitution was adopted. In this environment, I was able to further develop my research on the role of companies in democracy while also benefiting from the intensive exchange with colleagues at Wharton.”

The Wharton environment provided an extraordinarily productive climate shaped not only by collaboration with leading professors but also by exchange with doctoral students. Particularly noteworthy was the interaction with Alessio Salviato and Yifan Wang, who conduct research on business ethics, political philosophy, and moral decision-making. Their projects created strong synergies with Dr. Kapteina’s work on Corporate Democratic Action.

In addition, the stay in the United States enabled research visits to the University of Michigan, the University of Notre Dame, and Rutgers University. These connections broaden his international network and strengthen the visibility of his research. Teaching at TU Dresden also benefits directly from these experiences. Insights from Wharton and discussions with leading scholars are integrated into seminars at the IHI Zittau, giving students access to current international debates on business and democracy.

The research stay was supported by the Graduate Academy of TU Dresden as well as through an Add-on Fellowship from the Herz Foundation. This fellowship is one of the most competitive funding programs in Germany and promotes interdisciplinary research and international mobility.

Through his stay at the Wharton School and subsequent visits to U.S. universities, Dr. Kapteina was able to strengthen the international visibility of the Chair of Business Administration, esp. Responsible Management, at IHI Zittau, TU Dresden, while further sharpening his own profile as an emerging scholar at the intersection of business, politics, and democracy.