Human Resource Management & Organisational Behaviour

Lonwabo Makapela

Postdoctoral Fellow

Institute of Psychology, University of Bern · Allan Gray Centre for Values-Based Leadership, University of Cape Town

Dr. Lonwabo Makapela is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Social Psychology at University of Bern and an Associate at the Allan Gray Centre for Values-Based Leadership at University of Cape Town. She completed her PhD in Human Resource Management at the University of Pretoria and is both a Fulbright Program alumna and a recipient of the Swiss Government Excellence Scholarship. Her research has been published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, recognised at the Academy of Management, and acknowledged through her inclusion in the Mail & Guardian Top 200 Young South Africans in 2023.

Her work sits at the intersection of Human Resource Management, Organizational Behaviour, leadership, and Social Psychology. She examines how organisational norms, leadership systems, and workplace cultures shape identity expression, inclusion, and career outcomes across professional contexts. Her research particularly focuses on race, gender, social class, intersectionality, self-presentation, and professionalism at work, with a growing emphasis on leadership and organisational inclusion. She has conducted research across South Africa, the United States, Nigeria, and Switzerland.