[1][2] After her PhD, Hatten did postdoctoral research with Richard Sidman at Harvard Medical School from 1975 to 1978, studying neuron migration in the developing brain.

[1] Using the cerebral cortices of mice as a model, Hatten's research focuses on the development of complex cellular architecture in the mammal brain, studying how neurons migrate and differentiate.

[5] In 2018, Hatten and her colleagues conducted research on ASTN2, demonstrating that it helps move proteins away from the neuron's membrane in a timely fashion.

The researchers also proposed a mechanism by which ASTN2 plays a role in defecting lead to neurodevelopmental disorders such as ASD and intellectual disabilities.

[6] In conducting her research, the Hatten lab spearheaded the use of video imaging methods in viewing the dynamics of CNS neuronal migration along glial fibers.