Following her formative years, which were spent in Japan between 1902 and 1916, she studied political science in Geneva, Hamburg and Heidelberg, graduating with a doctorate.
[6][7] Abegg undertook her first trip as a journalist in 1934, during which time she traveled to Japan, where she reported on the cultural and political climate there.
[11][12] Abegg, who had been placed on a list of suspected war criminals by United States Army General Douglas MacArthur, was arrested by American troops in September 1945 and imprisoned in Sugamo Prison, following the defeat of Japan and the end of World War II.
Accused of making anti-American and anti-British propaganda broadcasts that were supportive of Germany and Japan, she was also accused of writing English language scripts for Tokyo Rose and was alleged to have published propaganda under the alias, Sybille Abe.
[26] With her several books about the society and politics of China and Japan, as well as her articles, Abegg helped to broaden popular knowledge about these countries in the German-speaking world.