2025 APSA Virtual Research Meeting (VRM)
April 10th and 11th | Research Group Workshop
The Virtual Worlds of Political Economy
Workshop Organizers: Roni Hirsch (Haifa University)
Key contemporary issues—such as algorithmic governance, the influence of social networks on democracy, fake news, and the rise of AI—trace back to questions that have long motivated political economists. From distinguishing fact from fiction to reimagining labor through carbon inputs, modeling the manufacture and distribution of goods, or circulating promises as new currencies, political economy has historically been a pioneering science in understanding “the virtual.”
This Research Group will bring together scholars interested in exploring political economy’s evolving body of knowledge and practices from the early-modern period through the present. Through debates and roundtables, the group will draw on historical moments to address contemporary challenges to democracy and the relevance of political theory. This workshop invites applications from scholars studying the history and politics of labor, finance and corporations, racial capitalism, political ecology, economic regulation and the fiscal state.
The group’s primary goal is to establish a research community for political theorists focused on the Political Theory of Capitalism (PTC), with a strong focus on historical methodologies drawn from the histories of capitalism and science. Building on informal discussions at past APSA gatherings, this marks the first formal scholarly platform to explore the puzzles, methodologies, and debates shaping this emerging subfield (or sub-subfield).
A distinctive feature of the PTC community is the use of historical methodologies, including intellectual history and the histories of science, politics, and economics. The 2025 APSA Virtual Research Meeting theme on “virtual worlds” highlights the field’s strengths by exploring the intersections between the virtual and the material in both historical and contemporary political economy.
The Research Group will divide its time between surveying current scholarship, identifying shared themes and methodological challenges, and workshopping ongoing research, with special emphasis on first book projects at various stages of development.
- Apply to a Virtual Research Group Workshop here. Deadline: Friday, February 14, 2025, 11:59 PM Pacific Time.
- View all research group workshop descriptions on the 2025 APSA Virtual Research Meeting website.
The 2025 APSA Virtual Research Meeting, held online April 10th and April 11th, will explore the meeting theme, “Political Science Research in a Virtual World.” This two-day virtual event, is designed for scholars to to develop and share their research, provide constructive feedback, and build networks and partnerships for future collaboration. Submit a Paper or Panel, or Research Group Workshop »