Head of Civil-Military Relations | Open University of Israel | Israel
Prof. Dr. Yagil Levy, a distinguished Full Professor and Head of the Institute for the Study of Civil-Military Relations at The Open University of Israel, is an eminent scholar in the fields of military sociology, political sociology, and public policy, with a career spanning over three decades. He earned his Ph.D. in Political Science from Tel Aviv University in 1993, following a B.A. in Political Science from the same university in 1984, laying a strong academic foundation for his later groundbreaking contributions. Professionally, he has held several prestigious appointments including Visiting Fellow at the European University Institute in Florence, Visiting Scholar at Georgetown University and Sciences Po Paris, and long-standing academic leadership positions at The Open University of Israel, where he has founded and led multiple programs in democracy studies, public policy, and government. His professional experience extends beyond academia into public service and civic engagement, having served as a strategic advisor to the Government of Israel, general manager in both governmental and nonprofit organizations, and policy consultant, all enriched by his earlier career as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Israel Defense Forces. Prof. Levy’s research interests are centered on the evolving dynamics of civil-military relations, militarization, political governance, and public policy, which he explores through a critical sociological lens and comparative perspectives. His research skills are evident in his capacity to secure competitive funding from institutions such as the Israel Science Foundation, the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, and collaborative university foundations, while also publishing extensively in top-tier academic outlets. He has authored and edited more than a dozen influential books with prestigious publishers including Cambridge University Press, Stanford University Press, NYU Press, and Rowman & Littlefield, while his peer-reviewed articles have appeared in highly regarded journals and conference proceedings indexed in Scopus and other leading databases. His awards and honors reflect his scholarly excellence and societal impact, notably being ranked among the world’s top 2% scientists in Social Sciences (Stanford–Elsevier, 2024), recipient of the Morris Janowitz Career Achievement Award (2021), and multiple best book awards from the Israeli Political Science Association. His influence extends through leadership roles in ERGOMAS, the Israeli Sociological Society, and editorial boards such as Armed Forces & Society, alongside his active role as a public intellectual publishing widely read op-eds in Ha’aretz. In conclusion, Prof. Dr. Yagil Levy stands out as a world-class researcher whose academic achievements, international collaborations, public engagement, and policy-relevant scholarship make him a leading figure in his discipline and a strong candidate for recognition in global research awards. Scopus data reflects his impact with 846 citations by 621 documents, 64 publications, and an h-index of 18.
Featured Publications
Levy, Y. (2007). Israel’s materialist militarism. Lexington Books. Citations: 164
Levy, Y. (1998). Militarizing inequality: A conceptual framework. Theory and Society, 27(6), 873–904. Citations: 127
Levy, Y. (2012). Israel’s death hierarchy: Casualty aversion in a militarized democracy. New York University Press. Citations: 112
Levy, Y., Lomsky-Feder, E., & Harel, N. (2007). From “obligatory militarism” to “contractual militarism”—Competing models of citizenship. Israel Studies, 127–148. Citations: 105
Levy, Y. (2012). Trial and error: Israel’s route from war to de-escalation. State University of New York Press. Citations: 96