Alessandra Voena's research focuses on economics of the family, as well as labor and development economics. She is currently engaged in two studies examining Zambian families' decision making about fertility and agricultural investments: "Maternal Mortality and the Gender Gap in the Demand for Children" and "Tenure Security and Agricultural Investment: Theory and Evidence from Zambia." Voena is contributing to collaborative work with the Initiative on Innovation and Access to Technologies for Sustainable Development.

Recent research includes "Yours, Mine, and Ours: Do Divorce Laws Affect the Intertemporal Behavior of Married Couples?" and "Compulsory Licensing: Evidence from the Trading-with-the-Enemy Act," published in the American Economic Review.

Voena received her PhD in economics from Stanford University (2011) and BA in economics from the University of Torino in Italy (2005). While at Stanford, she was a graduate dissertation fellow at the Michelle R. Clayman Institute for Gender Studies and was selected to participate in the May 2011 Review of Economic Studies European Tour.