Afiya Mbilishaka
Assistant Professor of Africana Studies and Psychology
Dr. Afiya Mbilishaka is a licensed clinical psychologist, hairstylist, professor, and the founder of PsychoHairapy, an innovative approach that uses hair care as an entry point into mental health. As an Ivy League and HBCU-educated scholar, she served as a subject matter expert for the CROWN Act, and is actively working to regulate toxic ingredients in beauty products marketed to Black consumers. Dr. Mbilishaka has trained stylists around the world to be mental health advocates. Her work boldly bridges beauty, science, and soul.
Publications
Mbilishaka, A. (2018). PsychoHairapy: Using Hair as an Entry Point into Black Women’s Spiritual and Mental Health. Meridians: feminism, race, transnationalism 16(2), 382-392. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/696151.
Mbilishaka, A., Apugo, D. (2020). Brushed aside: African American women’s narratives of hair bias in school. Race Ethnicity and Education, 23:5, 634-653, DOI: 10.1080/13613324.2020.1718075.
Mbilishaka, A. M., Clemons, K., Hudlin, M., Warner, C., & Jones, D. (2020, May 28). Don’t Get It Twisted: Untangling the Psychology of Hair Discrimination Within Black Communities. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry. Advance online publication. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/ort0000468.
Mbilishaka, A. M., Mbande, A., Gulley, C., & Mbande, T. (2020, October 29). Faded Fresh Tapers and Line-Ups: Centering Barbershop Hair Stories in Understanding Gendered Racial Socialization for Black Men. Psychology of Men & Masculinities. Advance online publication. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/men0000317
Education
- B.A., University of Pennsylvania
- M.S., Howard University
- Ph.D., Howard University