Man, currently Professor of Educational Psychology at CUHK, has taught in the UK for a dozen years. His encounter with an Iraqi student opened up a whole new academic universe. With a swelling interest in the Islamic world, Man ran off to the UAE. The five-year stay turned out to be a "life-changing experience".

Turned out Man did not start off with research on Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) right away. “My first PhD focused on Schizophrenia (精神分裂症).” He recounted his journey from studying in Canada and the UK, to securing a teaching position in the UK, then inspired by his Iraqi student and ran off to the UAE.