Robert Hefner

Robert W. Hefner is a professor in the Department of Anthropology and the Pardee School of Global Affairs at Boston University. From 1986-2017, he worked with the sociologist Peter L. Berger and served as director and associate director of the Institute on Culture, Religion, and World Affairs (CURA) at Boston University. He has also served as the director of the Center for the Study of Asia (2022-2025).

Hefner is an anthropologist and comparative historical sociologist who specializes in the study of religion, religion and democracy, citizen belonging, and political ethics and law (including shariah law). He has directed some 25 major research projects and organized 19 international conferences on issues ranging from Muslim politics and shariah law to citizenship and civic education in Western democratic societies. His research in recent years has had two thematic foci: the politics and ethics of civic-pluralist conflict and co-existence in Muslim-majority societies; and social recognition and citizen belonging in Western Europe and the United States. Hefner has published 24 edited or single-authored books, as well as seven major policy reports for the U.S. government and private foundations. Seven of his books have been translated into Indonesian and Malay; one has been published in Chinese. With the support of the Henry Luce Foundation, Hefner (2019-2021) co-produced, with Zainal Abidin Bagir of Gadjah Mada University, six films on democracy, plurality, gender, and citizenship in Indonesia.