Jha's research on attention, working memory, and mindfulness has investigated the neural bases of executive functioning and mental training using various cognitive neuroscience techniques.

[5] Since arriving at the University of Miami, she has co-founded the Mindfulness Research and Practice Initiative and serves as the Director of Contemplative Neuroscience for that effort.

Her lab has investigated mindfulness training as a route to strengthen attentional processes as well as reduce perceived stress, and improve mood.

Such stress can lead to a degradation of psychological health with potentially dire consequences for the individual (e.g. PTSD), mission (e.g. impaired judgment), and family (e.g. divorce), amongst others.

[9] She found that the more time Marines spent engaging in mindfulness exercises outside of the classroom, the more they improved in their working memory and mood.

These findings suggest that even in individuals facing extraordinary levels of stress, mindfulness training may help improve overall mental health and well-being.

This finding suggests that not only does mindfulness training have an immediate positive impact on emotional health but that the effects persist, providing long-term improvements in several aspects of well-being.

In a recent study, Jha and colleagues sought to determine whether, and if so, how, concentrative meditation training can affect attentional processing in school age children.

Greater access to these capacities with mindfulness training may help promote resilience and reduce recidivism in children who have entered the juvenile justice system.

Jha is an internationally recognized speaker, having spoken at the World Economic Forum, the Huffington Post's first-ever conference on women, "The Third Metric: Redefining Success Beyond Money and Power",[13] the Aspen Institute,[14] and the New York Academy of Sciences.