Nilanjana Buju Dasgupta

Buju Dasgupta is a professor of psychology in the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, and also the director of faculty equity & inclusion in the College of Natural Sciences at UMass Amherst. Her research centers on unconscious or implicit bias with emphasis on the ways in which changes in social contexts produce corresponding changes in people’s implicit attitudes, beliefs, and behavior. Dasgupta’s research identifies academic and professional contexts that protect individuals' sense of self and aspirations against negative stereotypes. Her work has been funded by the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and the American Psychological Foundation.

Dasgupta focuses much of her time on translating scientific research to inform social problems such as educational disparities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and the underrepresentation of women and ethnic minorities in professional leadership roles. She has presented this work to K-12 teachers and administrators, university leaders and faculty, business leaders, policymakers on Capitol Hill, Beacon Hill, and at a White House roundtable in the Obama administration.

Dagupta’s work has been recognized through the Distinguished Academic Outreach Award in Research from UMass Amherst (2014), the Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Accomplishments in Research and Creative Activity (2016), and the Hidden Bias Research Prize awarded by the Level Playing Field Institute, a private foundation based in Silicon Valley (2012).