Abigail Hornstein's research focuses on corporate finance of multinationals, with an emphasis on corporate governance and legal institutions. She has a particular expertise in the Chinese financial markets. Hornstein's publications include articles in journals such as the Journal of Empirical Finance, Journal of Comparative Economics, Journal of Economics and Management Strategy, Journal of Corporate Finance, and China Economic Review. These studies, and her teaching, also draw upon Hornstein's marketplace work experience as she spent five years working in Hong Kong financial institutions, including the HongKong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) as an economist and analyst before choosing an academic path. Hornstein’s career switch reflected a desire to understand the systemic causes and consequences of the Asian financial crisis given the unique characteristics of China’s economic development. Hornstein organized the 2015 conference "Teaching Finance at Liberal Arts Colleges" and founded and led the Liberal Arts Financial Economics Conference from 2015-2023. Hornstein, who speaks Mandarin, has twice been a Mellon Foundation Summer Fellow and also a Ford Foundation/Aspen Institute fellow.

Hornstein's PhD and MPhil in Economics are from the Stern School of Business, New York University and her bachelor's degree in East Asian Studies is from Bryn Mawr. While an undergraduate, she also studied Chinese language and politics at Nanjing University in China and Tunghai University in Taichung, Taiwan.