József Böröcz is an associate professor of sociology at Rutgers University. He is also a member of the Institute for Political Science and the Hungarian Academy of Science in Budapest. In 2006, Böröcz received the Knight's Cross of the Medal of Honor of the Republic of Hungary, a high state award bestowed by the president for his scholarly achievements. He was also the 2006 occupant of the Immanuel Wallerstein Chair in Global Ethics at the University of Ghent (Belgium).

His recent publications include: "Goodness Is Elsewhere: The Rule of European Difference" in Comparative Studies in Society and History; "What Is the EU?" International Sociology, and "Redistributing Global Inequality: A Thought Experiment," Economic and Political Weekly.

Böröcz earned an M.A. from Kossuth Lajos University (Debrecen, Hungary), and an M.A. and Ph.D. in sociology from Johns Hopkins University. Böröcz's scholarly interests include historical/comparative sociology, global structures, social change, economic discourse, state socialism and its legacy, empire and coloniality.