BA in Psychology

Afra S. Ahmad, 2008

Afra is the Program Director of Mason’s new online Master of Professional Studies in Applied Industrial and Organizational Psychology. She received her BA in Psychology (2008), MA (2008) and PhD (2016) in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from George Mason University. However, her relationship with Mason began almost 20 years ago in the 8th grade when she was an Early Identification Student. After graduating with her PhD, she worked as an Assistant Professor of Management in a Business School in Dubai for three years before returning home to Mason.

Ahmad’s program of research focuses on diversity, inclusion, and well-being in the workplace. Using a variety of methodologies (e.g., field experiments, lab experiments, meta-analyses, questionnaires), she works to understand the experiences of different demographic groups (such as religious employees, women and ethnic leaders, LGBT individuals, older workers, individuals with disabilities, and expatriates). Her research aims to generate effective remediation strategies that diverse employees can use to improve their work experiences, and offer guidance to organizations striving to achieve a tolerant and equitable workforce. In her short academic career, she has published 15 refereed journal articles, in leading journals and in popular press avenues, including Harvard Business Review. She has also made scholarly contributions in the form of writing various book chapters and presenting her work at conferences including the Academy of Management (AOM) and the Society for Industrial-Organizational Psychology (SIOP). Finally, she has received awards and grants related her research, including a Fulbright Fellowship.

Regarding her teaching experience, Ahmad has independently taught a total of eleven different undergraduate courses in both the business school and psychology department for a total of 36 in person sections and 6 online sections. Currently, she is developing the graduate level Personnel Selection, Research methods and practicum courses.

Finally, Ahmad always finds ways to give back to her department, college, university, professional and community. She has served as an ad-hoc reviewer for journals, reviewed conference submissions and reviewed papers for division awards. She is a Global Ambassador for the GDO division of AOM as well as an active committee member of SIOP’s Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs (CEMA). She continues to volunteer for interfaith and charity committees through her religious organization as well.