Dr Lorraine Whitmarsh
Postgraduate Research Interests
I am interested in the psychological and social dimensions of environmental, risk and sustainability issues. My research, which employs both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection and analysis, focuses on three main areas: (a) public engagement with climate change, carbon literacy, carbon offsetting, and low-carbon lifestyles; (b) public/stakeholder participation in sustainability science and policy; and (c) innovation and behaviour change with respect to sustainable transport and consumption.
Current Students
Sara Cartwright (jointly supervised with Nick Pidgeon) Sara’s project aims to: understand the likely impacts of climate change on a vulnerable portion of the population (namely older generations); empirically investigate how the demographic understands and interprets the climate change risks; and bridge the gap between expert knowledge on climate change and that of older generations.
Lucy Green (jointly supervised with Nick Pidgeon) Lucy’s research focuses on environmental values, behaviour and activism.
Po-Han Hsu (University of East Anglia; Jointly supervised with Irene Lorenzoni and Peter Simmons) Po-Han’s research examines the ways in which new media influences perceptions, group dynamics and behaviours in relation to energy use and climate change.