Reha joined SaverLife in 2026 as a Mixed Methods Researcher on the Research and Policy team. He draws on member transaction data and surveys as well as qualitative and participatory methods such as PhotoVoice and futures work to understand what is happening in members’ financial lives. His current work focuses on energy affordability, tax time, income volatility and savings, and how members see artificial intelligence shaping their finances and communities.
Reha’s career has focused on research with low- and moderate-income and underrepresented communities, especially on how systems and structures, not just individual choices, influence their outcomes. Before joining SaverLife, he was a Research Associate and Consultant at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College, where his eviction research with the United Way of Greater Nashville produced a data brief supporting Right to Counsel legislation for low-income tenants. He has also led the mixed methods evaluation of ICANN’s Applicant Support Program, a global equity initiative spanning 68 countries.
Reha holds a PhD in Community/Quantitative Psychology from Vanderbilt University, where he specialized in mixed methods. He also holds an MA in Social and Organizational Psychology from Koç University in Istanbul, a BA in Psychology and Political Science from Istanbul Medeniyet University, and a postgraduate certificate in AI and Machine Learning from the University of Texas at Austin. Reha lives in Dallas, Texas, where he enjoys hiking, playing story-driven video games, and trying coffee beans from around the world. He is also an avid reader of fantasy and world classics, with a soft spot for Dostoevsky and Jane Austen.