DoctorUsman Afzali

I serve as an Adjunct Senior Fellow in the School of Psychology, Speech and Hearing | Te Kura Mahi ā-Hirikapo at the University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha. Primarily, I am a lecturer in the Religion Programme | Mātai Wairuataka at the University of Otago | Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka, teaching psychology of religion, and scientific study of religion.

As a member of the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study (NZAVS) research group, my research centres on socio-political psychology, human flourishing, and wellbeing across religious and non-religious groups. In 2023-2024, I led the Muslim Diversity Study (MDS)—a multi-city, longitudinal project established during my Templeton Religion Trust-funded postdoctoral fellowship. While the fellowship has ended, the MDS continues under my co-leadership along with Prof Joseph Bulbulia (Victoria University of Wellington) and focuses on the socio-political psychology, wellbeing, and flourishing in the Muslim community of New Zealand. At its peak, I coordinated a team of 30 research assistants, and I continue to work closely with collaborators to deepen our understanding of Muslim experiences in Aotearoa New Zealand.

More broadly, I come from a multidisciplinary background that integrates cognitive sciences, neuroscience, social psychology, and the scientific study of religion. Currently, My research explores how religious beliefs and practices shape human cognition, behaviour, and social dynamics. Methodologically, I draw on experimental, neuroscientific (EEG/ERP), longitudinal, cross-sectional, quantitative, and qualitative approaches to investigate complex questions about the human mind, behaviour, and society.

During my PhD, I received advanced training in cognitive psychology and neuroscience, with a particular focus on memory suppression and the use of event-related potentials (ERPs) to detect concealed knowledge—work that intersects with forensic neuroscience. My first postdoctoral fellowship expanded my expertise into contemplative neuroscience, where I investigated the neural correlates of meditative and religious practices.