Prior to joining the EdUHK, Professor Chen studied or worked in Mainland China, the Netherlands and New Zealand for years.

Professor Chen's research focuses on school leader development. She is particularly interested in professional literacy, well-being, flow, and resilience of school principals and middle leaders. Professor Chen has developed four conceptual models and eight instruments. Her scientific contribution to the fields has been recognised by the international community. Professor Chen was invited as the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report Expert Group Member 2024 for the theme of ‘Leadership in Education’ and the reviewer for the UNESCO country profile (Mainland China) and regional profile (Hong Kong). The framework on teacher leadership developed by Prof Chen was recommended by the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report 2024 for international adoption. Moreover, she was also ranked among the top 2% of the world’s most-cited scientists in education since 2021 and the top 1% of the world’s most-cited scientists in education since 2024, according to lists compiled by Stanford University.