Stacie GoddardView profile
Professor
Stacie Goddard is the Betty Freyhof Johnson '44 Professor of Political Science and Associate Provost for Wellesley in the World at Wellesley College. A leading scholar in international relations, she specializes in great power competition, legitimacy, and international order with significant contributions to security studies. Her educational background includes: B.A. from the University of Chicago M.A. from Columbia University M.Phil from Columbia University Ph.D. from Columbia University Professor Goddard's research centers on how legitimacy shapes international outcomes, particularly in rising power challenges to the status quo. Her influential book When Right Makes Might: Rising Powers and World Order (Cornell University Press, 2018) demonstrates that rising powers gain accommodation when framing ambitions as legitimate extensions of existing order, while illegitimate claims trigger confrontation. She examines territorial conflicts, nuclear politics, and rhetorical strategies in great power rivalries through historical and contemporary case studies. Analysis of her recent publications reveals consistent focus on legitimation dynamics in Gaza, U.S.-China competition, and nuclear nonuse. Her work bridges theoretical IR debates with urgent policy questions about the liberal international order's resilience, showing how rhetoric and network structures influence state behavior in power transitions. She frequently explores the intersection of discourse, institutions, and material power in shaping international outcomes. Professor Goddard teaches advanced courses including Nuclear Politics (POL3338), Great Power Competition, and 'Dangerous Ideas' in international order. She actively engages public discourse through contributions to Foreign Affairs, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, translating complex security issues for broader audiences.








