Professor Dr. Beth Simmons

Biography

Beth Simmons is the Andrea Mitchell University Professor at Penn Law, University of Pennsylvania, specializing in international relations, international law, and international political economy. She is known for her research on international political economy during the interwar years and the global diffusion of policies, particularly how international law influences human rights outcomes around the world. Her notable works include "Adjusts? Domestic Sources Foreign Economic Policy Interwar Years" (2004) and "Mobilizing Human Rights: International Law Domestic Politics" (2009), the latter of which received the American Political Science Association's Woodrow Wilson Award. Simmons has been recognized by the American Society of International Law and the International Social Science Council for her contributions to the field, with her book being named book of the year in 2010 by the International Studies Association. Her current research focuses on global performance assessments, informal governance mechanisms, international affairs, and transnational crime, with special attention to the phenomenon of increased international border crossings in recent decades. She has experience working with the International Monetary Fund and served as the director of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard. Additionally, she is a past president of the International Studies Association and has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Research Interests