Her research focus is the intersection among behavioral science, political psychology, and comparative politics. She is especially interested in how individual-level traits, such as efficacy and empowerment, foster personal ambition and civic cooperation. Her teaching interests at Duke Kunshan include behavioral science, interventions design, political psychology, and the psychology of purposeful careers.

She is the author of numerous peer-reviewed articles in leading academic journals, including Nature, Nature Human Behaviour, World Politics, and Post-Soviet Affairs. She served as Co-Chair of the Organizing Committee for the International Society of Political Psychology’s Annual Convention in 2022 and is currently on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Social and Political Psychology (2020–2026).

Soboleva holds a Ph.D. in Political Science and Cognitive Psychology from Columbia University in New York, as well as master’s degrees in Public Administration and Political Science from London Metropolitan University and the Higher School of Economics, respectively. Before joining Duke Kunshan, she held academic appointments at the Higher School of Economics and the European University at St. Petersburg, where she taught courses in political behavior and methodology of social research.