She also taught at California State University, Long Beach, before joining Amherst. She received her Ph.D. in Sanskrit and Indian Studies at Harvard University in 1999, and holds an undergraduate degree from Reed College. She received a Guggenheim grant for her current book project on Buddhist theories of intention. Her area of specialization is Theravada Buddhism, and she works on Pali textual sources. Her current work focuses on moral psychology, emotions, and agency, particularly in the thought of the 5th century Theravada scholar, Buddhaghosa.