Wahl is an associate professor in the School of Education and Human Development and the director of the Good Life Political Project at the Karsh Institute of Democracy. Her work examines how ideas and ideals spread through education and advocacy, particularly in regard to state and civil society efforts to influence each other. Wahl's focus has been on how implicit philosophical beliefs about morality, justice, and human nature facilitate and undermine receptivity to dialogue, deliberation, and formal education. Wahl is especially interested in approaches to changing ideas and behavior that rely on voluntary learning in comparison to those that rely on various forms of public pressure.