Gregory P. Williams, PhD, is an associate professor of political science and international relations in the Gwen Ifill College at Simmons University. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Maine with membership in Phi Beta Kappa. As a Maine Policy Scholar, he studied clean elections and party politics. Dr. Williams also served as vice president of the Maine Outing Club. He earned his doctorate at the University of Connecticut. There, he specialized in international relations and comparative politics, winning competitive grants from the president's office and the multidisciplinary Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering.
Prior to coming to Simmons, Dr. Williams was associate professor of political science and international affairs at the University of Northern Colorado. There, he chaired his college's Committee on Policies and Procedures, served on the Faculty Senate, and represented the university to Colorado's higher education faculty advisory board. In 2018, Dr. Williams co-moderated a gubernatorial debate. In 2022, he, with colleagues, held a summer institute on congressional redistricting at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs.
Dr. Williams met his wife Colleen skiing at Arapahoe Basin. Now, they bring their daughter and dog to the mountains in Maine and New Hampshire. More information can be found on his personal website, www.gpwilliams.org.
Education
- Ph.D., Political Science, University of Connecticut
- Graduate Certificate, Global Governance, University of Connecticut
- M.A., Political Science, University of Connecticut
- B.A., Political Science, University of Maine
Research/ Creative Activities
Dr. Williams writes primarily about international relations, especially on the topics of American hegemony and radical perspectives of political economy. He also writes in the areas of comparative democratization, including social movements and state building, and on contemporary American political thought. His book, Contesting the Global Order: The Radical Political Economy of Perry Anderson and Immanuel Wallerstein, is a CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title. His paper on "Deep Engagement: The Social Narrative of U.S. Foreign Policy" won the award for best paper presented at the 2022 meeting of Northeastern Political Science Association. His other writings have appeared in journals such as Perspectives on Politics, American Political Thought, International Politics, and Social Movement Studies.
Publications
Book
Contesting the Global Order: The Radical Political Economy of Perry Anderson and Immanuel Wallerstein (Albany: SUNY Press, 2020). Series in New Political Science.
[Reviewed in Choice, Contemporary Sociology, E-International Relations, Journal of Economic Literature, Journal of World-Systems Research, New Political Science, Perspectives on Politics, and Socialist History.]
Articles and Chapters
"World-Systems Analysis as Critical Political Science," in Encyclopedia of Critical Political Science, Clyde Barrow, ed. (Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 2024).
"From Africa to the World: The Sources of Wallerstein's The Modern World-System," in The Anthem Companion to Immanuel Wallerstein," Chamsy el-Ojeili and Patrick Hayden, eds. (London: Anthem Press, 2023).
"Social history from a bird's eye view: Perry Anderson's theory of international relations," International Politics 58, no. 2 (2021): 259-277.
"What's the Matter with Resentment? Richard Hofstadter's Understanding of Political Paranoia," American Political Thought 8, no. 4 (2019): 528-551.
"Old Ideas for New Times: Radical History in International Political Economy," Perspectives on Global Development and Technology 17, no. 4 (2018): 429-450.
"Will We Know It When We See It? Contemplating Emergent World-Systems," Journal of Globalization Studies 9, no. 1 (2018): 14-34.
"When Opportunity Structure Knocks: Separatism in the Soviet Union and Russian Federation," Social Movement Studies 9, no. 4 (2010): 443-460.
Short Pieces
"The paranoid president," Monthly Review Online (August 11, 2020).
"The brutality of capitalism," Monthly Review Online (July 6, 2020).
"Labor Pragmatism," Perspectives on Politics 14, no. 1 (2016): 145-146.
Interview with Immanuel Wallerstein (and accompanying essay), "Retrospective on the Origins of World-Systems Analysis," Journal of World-Systems Research 19, no. 2 (2013): 202-210.
Book Reviews, Reference Entries, and Policy Studies
"Perry Anderson," in Encyclopedia of Critical Political Science, Clyde Barrow, ed. (Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, forthcoming 2024).
"Immanuel Wallerstein," in Encyclopedia of Critical Political Science, Clyde Barrow, ed. (Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, forthcoming 2024).
"Review of The Modern World-System IV: Centrist Liberalism Triumphant, by Immanuel Wallerstein," New Political Science 34, no. 3 (2012): 428-431.
"Review of The New Old World, by Perry Anderson," Socialist History 39 (2011): 100-103.
"Sunset Law In Connecticut" (with Carrie Vibert, lead author), Legislative Program Review and Investigations Committee, Connecticut General Assembly, Hartford, CT (2007): 1-61.
Reviews (2010-2014) in Choice Magazine: S. Ridgeway and P. Jacques, The Power of the Talking Stick (2014); A. Carter, People Power and Political Change (2013); I. Clark, Hegemony in International Society (2012); D. Drezner, Theories of International Politics and Zombies (2011); I. Neumann and O. J. Sending, Governing the Global Polity (2011); C. Hill, Grand Strategies (2010); and, A. Hybel, The Power of Ideology (2010).