His laboratory is best known for discovering models of empathy and social reward in laboratory mice. His work has been widely featured, including by writers for The New Yorker, Science, The Scientist, and Newsweek Russia.

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After publishing nearly fifty scientific papers, he left academic neuroscience. Now, he writes about it. His essays explore how our widespread dismissal of animal subjectivity can undermine progress in scientific research while reinforcing cultural myths that distort how we see other people, other animals, and even ourselves.

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For his narrative nonfiction, Lahvis has received the Oregon Literary Fellowship in Nonfiction, the Curt Johnson Prose Award in Creative Nonfiction, and two nominations for the Pushcart Prize. He has spoken at universities and public forums and is known for lively, engaging conversations with his audiences.