Rita Mufarrij Merhej, D.E.S.S.
Rita Merhej
Assistant Professor
Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Office: HER 30
Tel. ext.: 338
rita.merhej@haigazian.edu.lb
BIO
Rita Merhej is an assistant professor in the Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences. She received her post-graduate degree in clinical psychology from the Sorbonne University in Paris, and is currently working on her Doctorate degree in Social Psychology at the Lebanese University. Previously a lecturer in Psychology at AUB from 1993 till 2004, and ex- Director of the Friends of the Disabled Association from 2004 till 2011, she presently teaches psychology and education at Haigazian University and at the Lebanese American University (LAU). Ms Merhej is an expert trainer and consultant in rehabilitation and advocacy projects both in Lebanon and abroad; she has authored several books and manuals on child psychology, education and mental disability, and has served as Clinical Supervisor for intern students in clinical psychology of the American University of Beirut Medical Center. She is a Board member of the Lebanese Psychological Association (LPA), and an International Affiliate member of the American Psychological Association (APA).
TEACHING INTERESTS
Child and Adolescent Psychopathology
Special Education for people with disabilities
Industrial-Organizational psychology
RESEARCH INTERESTS
The perception of psychology in the Arab world
Cross-cultural research on child development
Violence, terrorism and extremism
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
– Merhej, Rita, Our Children from Birth to Adolescence, New Edition (Arabic),
Academia International, Beirut, Lebanon 2012
– Merhej, Rita, Manual for Psycho-social Support for children in Emergency Situations (Arabic),
Arab Resource Collective ARC, Beirut, Lebanon 2010
– Merhej, Rita, The Educational Kit for Teachers of Children with Intellectual Disabilities, (Arabic),
For “Lana Al Mostaqbal” Association in cooperation with OXFAM-Quebec ,2009
– Merhej, Rita, Our Children from Birth to Adolescence,
Academia, Beirut, 2001 (In Arabic), Winner of the Souad Al Sabbah Award for Best Cultural Achievement for
(in coordination with AUB Alumni Association)
– Merhej, Rita, Autism: diagnosis, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation manual.
Ministry of Social Affairs / Lebanese Organization for the Rights of the Disabled, (in Arabic), 2001
ACADEMIC DEGREES
Doctorate in Social Psychology (in progress), Lebanese University.
Diplôme d’Etudes Supérieures Spécialisées en Psychopathologie, Sorbonne University, Paris
M.A. General Psychology, American University of Beirut, Lebanon.
B.A. Psychology, American University of Beirut, Lebanon.
