Her research can be broadly categorized in the area of prejudice and discrimination as well as ethnic/racial identity and acculturation. Her research tends to focus on two ethnic groups: Arab Americans and African Americans. She has conducted research on predictors of discrimination for Arab Americans and predictors of prejudice towards the group. Dr. Awad is the co-chair of the APA Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs (CEMA) working group on Arab/Middle Eastern Americans and has served on several journal editorial boards.