FOLIO I · THINKER · GEN. 04 · N° 010

Gottfried Haberler

Works
27
Articles
204
Generation
4.
Portrait of Gottfried Haberler
FOL. 04 · N° 010 · Gottfried Haberler
BIOGRAPHY

Life and Work

The scion of a family of the minor nobility in the civil service (von Haberler) from Purkersdorf near Vienna earned doctorates in law and in political science (1923 and 1925), then worked at the Chamber of Commerce and completed postgraduate studies in London and at Harvard in 1927/28. After his return he was able to gain his habilitation with Der Sinn der Indexzahlen (1927) (The Meaning of Index Numbers). Besides his course at the University of Vienna, which he held partly together with Friedrich August von Hayek and Oskar Morgenstern, he took part regularly in Mises's private seminar and gave occasional guest lectures at Harvard University (1931/32). With his studies of international trade he quickly earned international recognition. In 1934 Haberler received the offer to compile for the League of Nations a broadly conceived survey of all the current business cycle theories, which subsequently brought him into contact with almost all the world's prominent economists and found its expression in his principal work, Prosperity and Depression (1937). Shortly before its publication he accepted a call to Harvard. As a man out of political favour, Haberler was stripped of his Austrian teaching licence in his absence immediately after the Anschluss. In the following years he used his excellent contacts and his talent for organization to help emigrants and exiles in many ways. In the United States Haberler gained great standing, became an adviser to the Board of Governors of the American central banking system, and was later elected to a series of high-ranking honorary positions, for example president of the American Economic Association in 1963. He remained attached to the Austrian School until his death.
Metadata
Born
20. Juli 1900
in Purkersdorf
Died
6. Mai 1995
in Washington (D.C.
Generation
Generation 4
Life stations

Stations

  1. 1900
    1900
    Birth · Purkersdorf
    Birth

    Born on 20 July 1900 in Purkersdorf near Vienna, the scion of a minor-noble family of civil servants (von Haberler).

  2. 1923
    1923
    Doctorate · Wien
    Doctorate in Law

    Doctorate in law at the University of Vienna in 1923.

  3. 1925
    1925
    Doctorate · Wien
    Doctorate in Political Science

    Doctorate in political science at the University of Vienna in 1925. Subsequently worked at the Chamber of Commerce.

  4. 1927
    1927
    Publication · Wien
    "Der Sinn der Indexzahlen" (The Meaning of Index Numbers)

    Publication of "Der Sinn der Indexzahlen" (The Meaning of Index Numbers; 1927), Haberler's Habilitation thesis.

  5. ⁦1927–1928⁩
    ⁦1927–1928⁩
    Studies · London / Harvard
    Postgraduate Studies, London and Harvard

    Completed postgraduate studies in London and at Harvard University in 1927/28.

  6. 1928
    1928
    Habilitation · Wien
    Habilitation in Vienna

    After returning from London and Harvard, Habilitation at the University of Vienna with "Der Sinn der Indexzahlen" (The Meaning of Index Numbers; 1927).

  7. ⁦1928–1936⁩
    ⁦1928–1936⁩
    Academic post · Wien
    Teaching at the University of Vienna

    Taught courses at the University of Vienna, in part together with Friedrich August von Hayek and Oskar Morgenstern. Regular participation in the Mises private seminar.

  8. ⁦1931–1932⁩
    ⁦1931–1932⁩
    Academic post · Cambridge, Massachusetts
    Guest Lectures at Harvard University

    Guest lectures at Harvard University in 1931/32.

  9. ⁦1934–1936⁩
    ⁦1934–1936⁩
    Career · Genf
    Commission from the League of Nations

    In 1934 he received an offer to compile a broad survey of all the current business cycle theories for the League of Nations, which brought him into contact with almost every prominent economist in the world.

  10. ⁦1936–1971⁩
    ⁦1936–1971⁩
    Academic post · Cambridge, Massachusetts
    Professor at Harvard University

    Professor at Harvard University from 1936 to 1971; worked with Joseph Schumpeter, among others.[1]

  11. 1937
    1937
    Publication · Genf
    "Prosperity and Depression"

    His major work "Prosperity and Depression" (1937), the outcome of the League of Nations commission.

  12. 1937
    1937
    Emigration · Cambridge, Massachusetts
    Appointment to Harvard University— approximate

    Shortly before the publication of <em>Prosperity and Depression</em> (1937), Haberler accepted an appointment at Harvard.

  13. 1938
    1938
    Other · Wien
    Withdrawal of the Austrian Teaching Licence

    As a politically undesirable figure, Haberler was stripped of his Austrian teaching licence in his absence immediately after the Anschluss.

  14. 1939
    1939
    Membership
    American Academy of Arts and Sciences

    Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1939.[5]

  15. ⁦1950–1953⁩
    ⁦1950–1953⁩
    Award
    President of the International Economic Association

    First President of the International Economic Association from 1950 to 1953.[6]

  16. 1963
    1963
    Award · USA
    President of the American Economic Association

    Elected President of the American Economic Association in 1963. Also an adviser to the Board of Governors of the American central banking system.

  17. ⁦1971–1995⁩
    ⁦1971–1995⁩
    Academic post · Washington, D.C.
    Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute

    Moved from Harvard in 1971 to become a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) in Washington, D.C., where he remained active until his death in 1995.[1]

  18. 1972
    1972
    Award
    Bernhard Harms Prize

    Received the Bernhard Harms Prize in 1972.[7]

  19. 1995
    1995
    Death · Washington, D.C.
    Death

    Died on 6 May 1995 in Washington, D.C., at the age of 94.

Relationships

Influences

Influenced by · 3
  1. ⁦1918–1925⁩
    ⁦1918–1925⁩
    Teacher

    Studierte an der Universität Wien u. a. bei Friedrich von Wieser; Promotion in Staatswissenschaften 1925.[1]

  2. ⁦1918–1925⁩
    ⁦1918–1925⁩
    Teacher

    Studied at the University of Vienna under Ludwig von Mises, among others; later a regular participant in the Mises-Privatseminar.[2]

  3. —
    —
    Teacher

    mises.org-Strigl-Biographie nennt Haberler explizit unter den Strigl geprägten Schülern der vierten Wiener Generation.[3]

Private seminar, colleagues, Mont Pèlerin · 6
  1. ⁦1920–1934⁩
    ⁦1920–1934⁩
    Private seminar

    Fellow participant in the Mises-Privatseminar in Vienna.

  2. ⁦1928–1936⁩
    ⁦1928–1936⁩
    Private seminar

    Haberler regularly took part in the Mises-Privatseminar in Vienna.[2]

  3. ⁦1928–1931⁩
    ⁦1928–1931⁩
    Colleague

    Haberler held his courses at the University of Vienna partly jointly with Friedrich August von Hayek.

  4. ⁦1929–1934⁩
    ⁦1929–1934⁩
    Private seminar

    Haberler held his courses at the University of Vienna partly jointly with Oskar Morgenstern.[4]

  5. ⁦1936–1950⁩
    ⁦1936–1950⁩
    Colleague

    As a professor at Harvard University, Haberler worked together with Joseph Schumpeter.

  6. —
    —
    Private seminar

    Both participants in the Mises-Privatseminar in Vienna.[4]

Gottfried Haberler in the context of the School as a whole: five generations, their teacher-student lineages, circles and collegial ties.

Show in the family tree →
SOURCES ON STATIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS11 citations · 3 sources
Topography

Places of Activity

CATALOGUE OF WORKS · CHRONOLOGICAL

The Books

1920s
1927
27 yrs.
Der Sinn der Indexzahlen
Book
OriginalGerman
1930s
1933
33 yrs.
Der Internationale Handel. Theorie der weltwirtschaftlichen Zusammenhänge sowie Darstellung und Analyse der Aussenhandelspolitik
Book·2 editions
OriginalGerman
Further editions
  • The Theory of International Trade with its Applications to Commercial Policy
    OriginalEnglish
    PDF · EN ↗Liberty Archive · Gottfried Haberler · Englische Ausgabe 1935
1934
34 yrs.
Liberale und planwirtschaftliche Handelspolitik [mit Stephen Verosta]
Book
OriginalGerman
1937
37 yrs.
Book·2 editions
Gottfried Haberler's "Prosperity and Depression" was produced as the first step of an inquiry, commissioned by the League of Nations, into the causes of recurring economic crises. The work pursues two aims: Part I systematically orders and examines the existing business cycle theories (the purely monetary theory, monetary and non-monetary over-investment theories, the acceleration principle, cost and over-indebtedness theories, under-consumption, psychological and harvest theories, as well as more recent debates around Keynes), while Part II develops from this a synthetic account of the nature and causes of the business cycle. Haberler arranges the theories according to upswing, upper turning point, downswing and lower turning point, and works out the interplay of endogenous and exogenous forces. A Part III deals with the multiplier, the acceleration principle, Hayek's Ricardo Effect, and price and wage rigidity. The guiding thesis is that many apparent contradictions between theories trace back to differing terminology.
OriginalEnglish
PDF · EN ↗EPUB · EN ↗Liberty Archive · Gottfried Haberler · Vereinte Nationen, Lake Success 1946 (Neuauflage)
Further editions
1940s
1942
42 yrs.
Consumer Instalment Credit and Economic Fluctuations
Book
OriginalEnglish
1943
43 yrs.
Quantitative Trade Controls – Their Causes and Nature [with Martin Hill]
Book
OriginalEnglish
1948
48 yrs.
Problemas de Conjunctura e de Politica economica [Fundacao Getulio Vargas, ed.]
Book
1950s
1954
54 yrs.
Currency Convertibility
Book·2 editions
OriginalEnglish
Further editions
1955
55 yrs.
A Survey of International Trade Theory
Book
OriginalEnglish
Prosperität und Depression Eine theoretische Untersuchung der
Book
OriginalGerman
10 of 22 entries
ARTICLES · 204 CATALOGUED

Essays, Reviews, Lectures

1920s
1923
23 yrs.
Die Nationalökonomie als exakte Wissenschaft
Article·Zeitschrift für Volkswirtschaft und Sozialpolitik 3, 1923, S. 771–781.
OriginalGerman
1925
25 yrs.
Kritische Bemerkungen zu Schumpeters Goldtheorie. Zur Lehre vom objektiven Tauschwert des Goldes, in Zeitschrift für Volkswirtschaft u. Sozialpolitik
Article
OriginalGerman
1927
27 yrs.
Albert Hahns Volkswirtschäftliche Theorie des Bankkredits, in Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft u. Sozialpolitik
Article
OriginalGerman
1928
28 yrs.
[Rezension zu] Albert von Mühlenfels: Steuerkraft und Wohlstandsindex
Article·Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik 59, 1928, S. 193–195.
OriginalGerman
[Rezension zu] Arthur R. Burns: Money and Monetary Policy in Early Times
Article·Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik 60, 1928, S. 423–424.
OriginalGerman
[Rezension zu] Walter Heinrich: Grundlagen einer universalistischen Krisenlehre
Article·Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik 60, 1928, S. 434–438.
OriginalGerman
A New Index Number and Its meaning, in The Quarterly Journal of Economics
Article
OriginalEnglish
1929
29 yrs.
[Rezension zu] Alvin Harvey Hansen: Business-Cycle Theory. Its Development and Present Status
Article·Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik 61, 1929, S. 208–209.
OriginalGerman
[Rezension] Oskar Morgenstern: Wirtschaftsprognose. Eine Untersuchung ihrer Voraussetzungen und Möglichkeiten (Wien 1928)
Article·Schmollers Jahrbuch für Gesetzgebung, Verwaltung und Volkswirtschaft im Deutschen Reiche 53, Nr. 1, 1929, S. 162–170.
OriginalGerman
[Rezension] Warren M. Persons: The Construction of Index Numbers (Boston 1928)
Article·The Journal of Political Economy 37, Nr. 6, 1929-12, S. 741–743.
OriginalEnglish
10 of 204 entries
Cite this page

Three copy-ready formats with the canonical URL and access date.

APA
Gottfried Haberler. (n.d.). Edited by mises.at and scholarium. Accessed October 8, 2026, from https://mises.co/gottfried-haberler
Chicago
“Gottfried Haberler.” n.d. Edited by mises.at and scholarium. Accessed October 8, 2026. https://mises.co/gottfried-haberler.
German historical style
Gottfried Haberler, edited by mises.at and scholarium, https://mises.co/gottfried-haberler (accessed October 8, 2026).