Dennis F. Thompson

Dennis Frank Thompson (born 12 May 1940, in Hamilton, Ohio) is a political scientist and professor at Harvard University, where he founded the university-wide Center for Ethics and the Professions (now the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics). Thompson is known for his pioneering work in the fields of both political ethics and democratic theory. According to a recent appraisal, he has become “influential within the world of political theory" by offering “greater concrete political thought than Rawls” and by showing “an atypical grasp, for a political theorist, of the real political world.”

Thompson is a leading proponent of the institutional approach to political ethics, which gives less attention to individual vices (such as greed and sexual misconduct) and more to institutional ones (such as abuse of power and neglect of accountability). His approach has stimulated new work on institutional corruption. Thompson's proposal to establish an independent body to regulate congressional ethics has been widely endorsed, though not by many members of the United States Congress. However, in March 2008, the U.S. House created a pared down version of such a body--the Office of Congressional Ethics.

Thompson’s first book on democratic theory, The Democratic Citizen: Social Science and Democratic Theory in the 20th Century, published in 1970, was one of the first to relate contemporary social science to theories of democracy. His much-cited 1996 book, Democracy and Disagreement, co-authored with Amy Gutmann, has been influential in promoting the idea of deliberative democracy, which calls for more reasoned discourse in public life. It is still stimulating discussion and controversy, and has led to the publication of an entire book devoted to its criticism and defense (Deliberative Politics, edited by Stephen Macedo). Some critics object that deliberative democracy is biased in favor of political elites. Defenders argue that more and better political deliberation can help all citizens. Thompson has worked to apply the ideas of deliberative democracy to such institutions as the U.S. electoral process, the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the British Columbia Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform, and healthcare organizations in the United Kingdom.

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