Henry R. Nau has taught political science and served in government for more than thirty years. He is currently Professor of Political Science and International Affairs in the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University, specializing in international relations and U.S. foreign policy.

From 1981 to 1983, he served on the National Security Council as senior director responsible for international economic affairs. He also served, between 1975 and 1977, as Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs in the Department of State. In 1977 he received the State Department's Superior Honor Award.

His books include At Home Abroad: Identity and Power in American Foreign Policy; Trade and Security: U.S. Policies at Cross-Purposes; The Myth of America's Decline: Leading the World Economy into the 1990s; National Politics and International Technology: Nuclear Reactor Developments in Western Europe; and Perspectives on International Relations: Power, Institutions, and Ideas.

International Relations in Perspective brings together a set of 43 classic and contemporary selections designed to introduce students to the most influential scholarship and key issues in the field. As balanced in its approach as Naus introductory text, this distinctive reader gives equal space to realism, liberalism, constructivism and the work of critical theorists, more effectively reflecting the current state of scholarly debate. Organized to complement Perspectives on International Relations but flexible enough to use with any text or on its own, the collection covers a host of topics including terrorism, human security, development, civil society, global governance, political economy, and more. The book features substantive chapter introductions that situate the readings and help students understand how selections speak to one another.