James Dongjin Kim

James Dongjin Kim is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Washington, where he is also affiliated with the Center for Korean Studies and the Program on Strategy, Policy, and Diplomacy Research. He previously was a 2024-2025 CSIS-USC US-Korea NextGen Scholar and a 2023-2024 Stanton Nuclear Security Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Security Studies Program.

His research focuses on international security and conflict, with an emphasis on the political consequences of exposure to violence. His first book project shows that childhood exposure to war has long-term, divergent effects: it increases support for nuclear armament as an adult while decreasing the willingness to use military force. Part of this project won the 2024 Patricia Weitsman Award from the International Security Studies Section (ISSS) of the International Studies Association (ISA).  His broader research interests include nuclear security, the impact of leader backgrounds on foreign policy decision making, and the security implications of high-level diplomatic visits.

His academic research has been published or is forthcoming in the Journal of Politics, International Studies Quarterly, Journal of Conflict Resolution, Journal of Peace Research, International Studies Perspectives, Foreign Policy Analysis, Social Science Quarterly, and Presidential Studies Quarterly. He has also written policy commentaries on nuclear deterrence and proliferation on the Korean Peninsula for outlets such as the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the National Bureau of Asian Research, NK News, and East Asia Forum.

He received his Ph.D. in Political Science from Texas A&M University in 2023. He received his M.A. in International Relations from Tsinghua University, China, and his B.A. in Political Science and Diplomacy from Yonsei University, South Korea.