Gary Pheiffer

Role
Department of Psychology
Section
School of Social Sciences
Email

About

Dr. Gary Pheiffer is an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at Heriot-Watt University. He teaches on both the MSc Business Psychology program and undergraduate psychology courses. He is Course Director for the MSc Business Psychology program, Dr. Pheiffer also manages the PhD program for the School of Social Sciences (SoSS) at the Dubai campus.

In addition to his academic roles, he delivers executive education courses and provides organizational consulting, specializing in work psychology, strategy, and human resource management (HRM). Dr. Pheiffer’s expertise spans multiple facets of work psychology and business education, with a strong focus on applied practice.

Biography

Academic Leadership and Affiliations:

  • Internal Leadership Roles:
    • Program Director for MSc Business Psychology at Heriot-Watt University
    • PhD Program Manager for the School of Social Sciences (SoSS), Dubai campus
    • Founder and Board Member for the Society for Business Psychology, Middle East
    • Lead for various UG and PG program development and accreditation processes
    • Organizer of the External Speaker Series for the MSc Business Psychology program
    • Coordinator of the "Science to Practice" series connecting industry professionals with academic staff
  • External Affiliations:
    • Chartered Occupational Psychologist (British Psychological Society - BPS)
    • Chartered Member of the Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD)
    • Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA)
    • HCPC Registered Practitioner Psychologist
    • BPS Stage 2 Qualification Supervisor
    • External PhD Examiner
  • Consultancy and External Work:
    • Consultancy work with international organizations, including PwC (UAE), STC (Saudi Arabia), Dubai Government, and Viwell (Dubai)
    • Regular speaker and contributor to industry-focused conferences and executive education programs

Qualifications:

  • Ph.D. (Influence of Adult Attachment on Team Functioning)
    London Metropolitan University 2016
  • Diploma in Psychology 1996
    Open University
  • Master of Arts in Organisational Psychology
    University of Cape Town, South Africa 1990
  • Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Psychology
    University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
  • Bachelor of Art (Hons) in Industrial Psychology
    University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
  • IAN Post Graduate Certificate Course 2021 (Attachment Theory).
Research
  • Adult attachment: To explore the influence of adult attachment in areas such as teams, leadership, wellbeing and performance. 
  • Student wellbeing is looking at what impacts on issues such as student wellbeing and the role of identity and belonging, what influence and impacts are there on student belonging. 
  • Wellbeing in all workplace areas and specifically what is the role and impact of student wellbeing on teachers job demands, and what resources are useful in this process. 
Publications

Journals

Blignaut, S., G. Pheiffer, A. Visser, L. Le Grange, S. Maistry, L. Ramrathan, and S. Simmonds. 2022. “Belonging, Wellbeing and Stress With Online Learning During COVID-19”. South African Journal of Higher Education 36 (6), 169-91. https://doi.org/10.20853/36-6-5525.

Maria S. Plakhotnik, Natalia V. Volkova, Cuiling Jiang, Dorra Yahiaoui, Gary Pheiffer, Kerry McKay , Sonja Newman and Solveig Reißig-Thust (2021). The perceived impact of COVID-19 on student well-being and the mediating role of the university support: Evidence from France, Germany, Russia and the UK. Frontiers in Psychology:  Educational Psychology.

Sylvan Blignaut, Gary Pheiffer, Lesley Le Grange, Suriamurthee Maistry, Labby Ramrathan, Shan Simmonds, Anja Visser (2021).  Engendering a sense of belonging to support student well-being during COVID-19: A focus on Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 4. Sustainability.

Bezler, T., Moneta, G., & Pheiffer, G. (2019). Development and Validation of the Work Environment Complexity Scale for Leaders.  Journal of Organizational Change Management.

Conference Papers

Pheiffer, G., & Marson, K. (2024, June 28). Effects of expectations on reactions to merger: An integrated identity perspective. Paper presented at the UK Culture and Psychology Conference, University College London, London, UK.

Pheiffer, G. et al (2023). Empowering female managers in the Digital Era: Overcoming barriers, harnessing opportunities. International Psychology Conference Dubai (IPCD), 14-15 October 2023.

Pheiffer, G et al (2023). Embracing the digital transformation in Business Psychology: A path to innovation and impact. Speaker at the International Psychology Conference Dubai (IPCD), 14-15 October 2023.

Pheiffer, G (2023). "The role of relationships in perceptions of workplace dehumanization" at the International Conference on Psychology and Neuroscience in Dubai, UAE, in March 2023.

Plakhotnik, M., Volkova, N., Jiang, C., Yahiaoui, D., Pheiffer, G., McKay, K., Newman, S. and Reißig-Thust, S., 2020. What is the Perceived Impact of Covid-19 on Student Well-being? Evidence from Business Schools in Russia, France, Germany, and UK. In ANNUAL GSOM EMERGING MARKETS CONFERENCE 2020 (pp. 157-161).

Newman, S & Pheiffer, G. (2020). A UK Study of Teachers’ Experiences of Being Responsible for Students’ Mental Health. IWP conference 2020

Unler, E, Pheiffer, G., CALISKAN, S & Moran, M (2020). The influence of adult attachment on types of employee voice. Irish Academy of Management 2020 Conference, 26 - 28 August 2020

Unler, E., Pheiffer, G, Moran, M & LUONI, G. (2020). Cross-cultural differences in job influences teachers‘ engagement and intention to quit. Irish Academy of Management 2020 Conference, 26 - 28 August 2020.