Her research focuses on issues of accountability, governance, and political participation in developing contexts, with particular emphasis on Asia and East Africa. Her book, Accountability Without Democracy: Solidary Groups and Public Goods Provision in Rural China, was published in Cambridge University's Studies on Comparative Politics and received the 2007-08 Dogan Award from the Society of Comparative Research for the best book published in the field of comparative research. Tsai has also published articles in The American Political Science Review, Comparative Politics, The China Quarterly, and World Development. Tsai received a Ph.D. in government from Harvard University in 2005, and is a graduate of Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley. She is the recipient of fellowships from the Fulbright program and the Harvard Academy for International and Area Studies.