Patrick Heller the author of "The Labor of Development" (Cornell University Press, 1999) which examines the role of subordinate classes in the transformation to capitalism in the Indian state of Kerala. He has written on a range of topics on India, including democratic consolidation, the politics of economic transformation, social capital and social movements. Most recently, he has conducted fieldwork in South Africa, exploring processes of democratization through case studies of the civics movement and local government re-structuring. He is currently engaged in a long-term project exploring the dynamics of democratic deepening in India, Brazil and South Africa.
Patrick Heller is also the Director of the Development Studies concentration. He teaches the Senior Seminar in Development Studies (DS 198), Globalization and Social Conflict (Soc. 162) and Recent Sociological Theory (So 205).