Associate Professor | Lebanese American University | Lebanon
Dr. Luma Balaa, Associate Professor at the Lebanese American University, is a distinguished scholar in English Studies whose expertise lies in gender, feminist theory, children’s literature, folklore, and postcolonial writing, with a special focus on Arab women’s voices and cultural narratives. She earned her Ph.D. in English Studies with a concentration on gender, fairytales, and children’s literature from the University of Strathclyde, Scotland, in 1993, following an M.A. in Contemporary Literary Studies from Lancaster University, a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Linguistics and TESOL from the University of Leicester, and both a B.A. in English Literature (with distinction) and a Teaching Diploma from the American University of Beirut. Over the course of her academic career, Dr. Balaa has held teaching and leadership roles that reflect her deep commitment to scholarship and student mentorship, while contributing significantly to international research in feminist literary theory and postcolonial studies. Her research interests span feminist criticism, gender theory, Lebanese and Arab women’s writing, fairytales, monster theory, and postcolonial literature, supported by research skills in qualitative methodologies including surveys, interviews, and discourse analysis. She has published extensively in high-impact journals such as the Journal of Postcolonial Writing, Marvels & Tales, Hawwa, and the Journal of International Women’s Studies, showcasing her intellectual breadth and critical engagement with themes of identity, power, and representation. Recognized for her academic contributions, she actively participates in international scholarly dialogues, builds cross-cultural collaborations, and supports emerging researchers through supervision and mentorship. Dr. Balaa’s scholarly excellence is evident in her sustained impact, with Scopus metrics highlighting 21 citations across 20 documents, 12 published works, and an h-index of 3, underscoring her growing influence and visibility in the field of feminist and postcolonial literary studies.
Profiles: Google Scholar | Scopus | ORCID | ResearchGate | LinkedIn
Featured Publications
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Diab, R., & Balaa, L. (2011). Developing detailed rubrics for assessing critique writing: Impact on EFL university students’ performance and attitudes. TESOL Journal, 2(1), 52–72. Cited by: 33
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Balaa, L. (2018). El Saadawi does not orientalize the other in Woman at Point Zero. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 19(6), 236–253. Cited by: 15
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Balaa, L. (2019). Framed: The door swings both ways in the Lebanese movie Caramel directed by Nadine Labaki, produced by Anne-Dominique Toussaint; written by Nadine Labaki, Rodney El Haddad, Jihad Hoiely. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 20(7), 430–447. Cited by: 11
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Balaa, L. (2021). Who are you? Journal of International Women’s Studies, 22(5), 478–479. Cited by: 5
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Balaa, L. (2014). Why insanity is not subversive in Hanan al-Shaykh’s short story Season of Madness. Australian Feminist Studies, 29(82), 480–499. Cited by: 4
