Lukas M. Müller studied Geodesy and Geoinformation (TUM), Sociology and Philosophy (LMU) in Munich. He completed his Master’s degree in Sociology in 2025 with a thesis titled „Elements of Social Evolutionary Theory(ies). Evolutionary Concepts in the Work of Niklas Luhmann, Bernd Baldus and Hans Joas“.

He ist currently pursuing his PhD at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Rudolf Stichweh with a thesis provisionally titled „Literacy as an evolutionary achievement“, which examines the efficacy of evolutionary theoretical descriptions for sociology and, in particular, the theory of society. He is also interested in the sociology of voluntary organisations as well historical-sociological questions and the sociology of religion.

Lukas M. Müller is a doctoral fellow of the Evangelisches Studienwerk Villigst.

Abstract "Literacy as an evolutionary achievement"

The doctoral project examines the relationship between literacy and socio-cultural evolution. Literacy is defined here as the extent to which written communication can be expected within or by a society system or subsystem. Against the backdrop of a systems-theoretical theory of society, the project understands literacy as an evolutionary achievement in the sense of Niklas Luhmann and, drawing on the repeated occurrence of historical ‚reading revolutions‘, investigates under which conditions an expansion of literacy results in a change in the mode of socio-cultural evolution and under which it does not. It thus pursues, firstly, the aim of making the theory of socio-cultural evolution accessible to empirical research, in particular through an explication of the concept of the evolutionary achievement; secondly, it aims to develop a theory of literacy integrated with systems theory and the theory of society. The project thus aims to contribute to a sociological theory of literacy, to the theory of literacy, to the theory of socio-cultural evolution, and to empirical research at the interface between history and sociology.

Teaching experience

Summer Semester 2025

Seminar: "The theory of Evolution as a Theory of Social Change" for Bachelor’s students of Sociology and teacher training students, LMU Munich, co-taught with Dr. Stefan May

May 2025      

Seminar lecturer "On the Sacredness of the Person and the Power of the Holy", weekend seminar on and with Prof. Dr. Hans Joas, Münchner Volkshochschule

Summer Semester 2024

Seminar "The Political Sociology of Niklas Luhmann" for Bachelor’s students of Sociology and teacher training students, LMU Munich, co-taught with Dr. Stefan May

Winter Semester 2019/2020, 2022/2023, 2023/2024 and Summer Semester 2020

Accompanying tutorial for the lectures "Introduction to Sociology" and "Sociological Theories" by Prof. Dr. Armin Nassehi, LMU Munich

Winter Semester 2015/2016 and Summer Semester 2026

Accompanying tutorial for the lectures „Informatics for Civil and Environmental Engineering 1“ and „Informatics for Cicil and Environmental Engineering 2“ at the Chair of Computer-Aided Modelling and Simulation, TU Munich