Anna Bashkirova

Anya is a passionate and creative behavioural scientist with a particular interest in innovation, creative strategy, human-computer interaction, and mental health. She is currently completing her Behavioural Science master's at the London School of Economics. 

Anya brings a solid research foundation, with research experience in the fields of wellbeing, strategy and innovation as well as experience designing behavioural interventions in public and private sectors. She has been awarded the Undergraduate Research Fellowship Award for her contributions to research in the field of organisational psychology. Anya's work experience in user research and corporate strategy, along with her proficiency in qualitative and quantitative methods, allows her to effectively understand user friction points and design impactful behavioural change interventions.

Graduate Researcher, London School of Economics                                                                                       March 2023- Present 

• ‘The Impact of Diagnosis Congruency on Psychologist Trust and Acceptance of AI Triage Recommendations: An Investigation’. Master’s Thesis. Supervisor: Dario Krpan.
• This study investigated the interplay between practitioner intuition and AI recommendations during MH decision-making, drawing on psychological theories of automation and confirmation bias.
• Led the study throughout the research cycle, designing the experiment in Qualtrics, recruiting participants, monitoring data collection, analysing data in Stata and preparing the paper for publication. 
• Created over 20 mock AI e-triage user interfaces in Figma in consultation with clinical psychologists and mental health e-triage organisations.

Junior Behavioural Consultant Intern, Cowry Consulting                                                                                                April 2023

• Worked with a team of behavioural designers and architects on projects aimed at changing customer behaviours and improving user experience for 2 large energy and insurance providers.
• Conducted behavioural audits, identifying friction points in customer journeys across company’s digital platforms.
• Participated in meetings for course design and delivery to teach behavioural tools to designers and leadership.
• Redrafted communications to energy company customers using behavioural science principles (e.g., reciprocity, social norms) to increase response rates and customer satisfaction and nudge user towards green energy use.
• Assisted with conducting focus groups with several stakeholder groups to eliminate informational inconsistencies in the customer service guidebook designed with incorporation of behavioural principles. 

Research Assistant (Organisational Psychology), King’s College London.                                                   May 2022- Sept 2022 

• ‘The social intrapreneur’s journey: Seeking Purpose in the corporation’. Supervisor: Elisa Alt                                                               
• Conducted a longitudinal inductive study which aimed to provide insight into how corporate employees form and manage their intrapreneurial identities while sustaining their ‘day jobs’ and managing their wellbeing.
• Applied qualitative coding to over 50 interviews, deriving key themes related to identity, wellbeing, and career development - a process similar to user research in experience design.
• Translated complex qualitative findings into insights and employee stories shared with relevant organisations.
• Collaborated on constructing 3 well-being intrapreneur profiles, akin to developing user personas in design, and identified patterns leading to burnout. Findings presented at the Annual Academy of Management conference. 
• Awarded the ‘Undergraduate Research Fellowship Award’ for research contributions in organisational psychology.

Research Assistant (User Research Feasibility Trial), King’s College London.                                           Sept 2021- June 2022

• ‘A novel online programme for fatigue; a feasibility study’. Supervisor: Alicia Hughes
• Conducted a trial which aimed to test the feasibility of a novel computerized cognitive bias modification (CBM) intervention, aimed at changing interpretation bias related to fatigue for chronically ill patients. 
• Provided input towards research design at recruitment, task completion, data analysis and evaluation stages. 
• Monitored quantitative data collection and online intervention user experience, acting as a primary point of contact for NHS patients. 
• Used Access and Qualtrics for collection, cleaned and analysed data using Excel, SPSS and JASP.
• Conducted semi-structured in-depth qualitative exit interviews and thematically coded data in NVIVO, gaining insights into product usability and compiling recommendations for digital product improvements. 

Strategy Intern, TATA STEEL                                                                                                                             Jun- Aug 2021

• Conducted a benchmarking analysis measuring the company’s current wellbeing strategies against industry best practices and produced a report outlining key opportunities for improvement. 
• Designed and rolled out 3 companywide wellbeing questionnaires and analysed the collected data in SPSS.
• Evaluated and contributed to the design of new educational courses incorporating behavioural science techniques, demonstrating a strong understanding of user needs and behaviours.
• Led four focus groups of 10 employees each and conducted a thematic analysis to understand company-wide health trends and evaluate the effectiveness of pre-existing wellbeing interventions. 
• Collaborated with HRM Chiefs, initiating discussions to improve employee wellbeing, showing the ability to work in cross-functional teams and influence stakeholders.
• Presented a final strategy report outlining short- and long-term wellbeing objectives to the Head of Strategy.

MSc Behavioural Science, London School of Economics                                                                       September 2022-Present

Predicated grade - Distinction

Modules: Behavioural Science and Technology, Wellbeing for Policy, Experimental Design, Quantitative Methods, Organisational Development.

BSc Psychology, King’s College London                                                                                                       2019- 2022

       Achieved grade – First Class Honours 

Relevant Modules: Choice Psychology, Organisational Psychology, Economics Psychology, Research Methods. 

Dissertation: Randomised Controlled Trial testing the effectiveness of a cognitive bias modification online programme aimed at reducing interpretation bias in cancer patients. Dissertation grade: 77% (top 5th percentile).