Sangmin Bae teaches and conducts research in the areas of human rights, human security, international organizations, and East Asian politics. Dr. Bae’s research focuses particularly on the role of political leadership and domestic political institutions in explaining why countries respond differently to international human rights norms.

Her work has appeared in various journals, including Comparative Politics, International Journal of Human Rights, Asian Affairs, Pacific Affairs, International Politics, Human Rights Review, Zeitschrift Fuer Menschenrechte [Journal for Human Rights], and Asian Journal of Political Science, among others. She is the author of 'When the State No Longer Kills: International Human Rights Norms and Abolition of Capital Punishment" (SUNY Press, 2007) and "Human Security, Changing States and Global Responses" (Routledge 2015).