Reema Ayub – Where Psychology Meets Corporate

As a clinical psychologist, it is important to understand that digital footprints—especially those created through our online behavior—can become a powerful tool for psychological manipulation, even within professional environments. Emotional vulnerability is no longer limited to interpersonal dynamics or direct communication; it now extends into the digital domain, where our data is constantly being collected, analyzed, and used to construct profiles of our preferences, triggers, fears, and beliefs. Online activity—ranging from social media interactions to browsing habits and even seemingly benign engagements like commenting on professional articles or liking posts—generates data points that contribute to what is known as a “psychographic profile.” This profile includes not only surface-level interests but also deeper psychological patterns such as emotional responses, motivational drivers, and cognitive biases. These profiles can be harnessed, often invisibly, to influence thought pr...

The year is 2025, but looking back to the early 2000s, I often wonder—has anything really changed? Back then, I wore a burka, watched Shaktiman, and used Facebook to make new friends. Now, while technological advancements have reshaped the world, the underlying cultural and societal patterns seem frozen in time, particularly in the subcontinent. Women are still judged by the standards of religion and morality, but the focus has slightly shifted. Let me take you on a journey through this perspective, strictly tied to the cultural context of the subcontinent, while living in Pakistan. 1. Middle-Class Women and the Judgment of Morality: In Pakistan’s middle class, wearing an abaya (burka) earns women immense respect. However, the same is not true for lower-class or upper-class women, who seem to have outgrown or ignored this pressure. Lower-class women are too occupied with survival, while upper-class women focus on ambition and influence. Middle-class women, on the other hand, juggle soc...