While scholars in most fields argue about how laws can be changed to maximize their effectiveness, scholars of international law still regularly debate whether many of the most prominent international agreements have any effect on state behavior. Part of the reason that this foundational question is still being debated is that answering it with observational data has proven to be all but impossible. This talk will explain why research on international law has made so little progress determining whether two core areas of international law—human rights law and the laws of war—help to improve people’s lives, and then will explore how researchers are starting to use experimental methods to gain traction on the topic.

Adam Chilton is Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Chicago Law School. This talk was recorded on November 4, 2014, as part of the Chicago's Best Ideas lecture series.