Marranci is a former academic specialising in cognitive and neuro-psychological anthropology, he has worked on identity and self and emotions. He focused on Cognitive Psychology with a deep interest in study emotions and identity processes. He has studied such dynamics in particular among Muslim cultures and societies. He has been the Director of the Study of Contemporary Muslim Lives research hub at Macquarie University. and Senior Honorary Research Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK. He was formerly associate professor at the Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore. Marranci is the founding editor of the first anthropological journal of Islamic studies, ''Contemporary Islam: Dynamics of Muslim Life''. Together with Bryan Turner he also founded the book series ''Muslims in Global Societies'' with Ronald Lukens-Bull serving as an assistant editor.
