She received her PhD in Sociology from University of Arizona, USA. During her work in the USA, Mayorova studied the social networks of the American corporate elite, social stratification in Russia, the integration of Georgian refugees and the participation of state and private companies in the market of education services and entertainment for children in the USA. While working as a senior research fellow at the American Sociological Association, she carried out evaluative research of educational programmes. Her main research interests are network analysis, social stratification and organizational theory.