Research

My Work

I am a Ph.D. candidate in Applied Social & Cultural Psychology with a graduate minor in Middle East & Muslim World Studies at Florida International University. As a formally affiliated scholar with the Center for Arab & Middle Eastern Studies (CAMES) at the American University of Beirut, I am currently conducting dissertation fieldwork in Lebanon examining how young adults define and practice resilience within conditions of prolonged crisis

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My research centers Arab and Middle Eastern communities and advances three interconnected lines of inquiry:

(1) community-grounded resilience and meaning-making in Beirut, Lebanon
(2) the psychology of cultural appropriation and globalized aesthetics, and
(3) gendered and racialized violence, including image-based sexual abuse.

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Using qualitative, experimental, and mixed-method approaches, I investigate how cultural systems regulate identity and behavior—and how individuals navigate, resist, or internalize power in their everyday lives. My work is guided by critical and decolonial frameworks and emphasizes collaboration with cultural insiders to ensure that psychological science is accountable to the communities it studies.

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Trained in Dr. Asia Eaton’s Power, Women & Relationships (PWR) Lab at FIU, I am deeply committed to producing research that is both theoretically innovative and socially impactful. Before pursuing psychology, I earned a B.F.A. in Fine Arts from Pratt Institute. My creative background continues to shape my research design—particularly the development of culturally informed visual stimuli—and my broader dissemination of science.

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I welcome conversations and collaborations. Please feel free to reach out!