Washington Square Park, New York City!

How to pronounce my name:

My first name is pronounced “Oos-MAHN”

My last name is pronounced “Lee-AH-cut”

More on my background:

I was born and raised in Karachi, Pakistan, a sprawling coastal metropolis on the Arabian Sea that is home to over 20 million people. Karachi was an interesting place to live with some of the kindest, friendliest people I have met and an astounding amount of culture and great cuisine (which I still miss immensely!) However, it was also a sometimes difficult place to live. It is the largest city in Pakistan and the most diverse. I believe diversity is a strength, of immense value, and should be celebrated. But growing up, it often caused disturbance around me. People from different ethnic backgrounds often clashed with one another, forcing schools to close and bringing the city to a standstill. Religious minorities often found themselves being discriminated against and even forced to leave their homes. It was these early formative experiences that sparked my interest in studying intergroup conflict and more broadly, people’s aversive reactions to diversity and social change towards a more egalitarian society.

Other interests:

When I am not obsessing over a new research question and study designs, or rewriting a sentence in a manuscript for the 20th time, you can usually find me in one of three places: (a) my kitchen (trying new recipes and baking/cooking up a storm), (b) on a steep hiking trail punishing my calves in Ithaca, NY, or (c) soaking up some sunshine next to a body of water (but not in it, thanks to a traumatic screening of Jaws when I was 5 years old). Fun fact: prior to coming to the U.S., I worked as a journalist in Karachi, Pakistan (you should ask me about some of the most interesting things we covered!)