Research output per year
Research output per year
Dr
EH14 4AS
United Kingdom
Accepting PhD Students
Research activity per year
Career background
I am an Assistant Professor in Strategy and Enterprise in Edinburgh Business School. Prior to moving into academia, I worked in sustainability management for over ten years. I was Research and Policy Manager in the Department for Social Responsibility and Sustainability at the University of Edinburgh, working on socially responsible supply chains and procurement, responsible investment, circular economy, and the university as a Living Lab. I worked for international and local non-governmental organisations in Senegal and India, on sustainability certifications and value chain development. I completed a PhD in Psychology at the University of Edinburgh in 2022, and then gained ESRC funding for a Postdoctoral Fellowship at Heriot-Watt, before becoming an Assistant Professor.
Current roles and responsibilities
Alongside my research on sustainability in organisations, I teach on two undergraduate courses - Management in a Global Context, and Sustainable Business. I supervise undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations. I am a participating member of the Centre for Applied Behavioural Science, and the Culture and Social Interaction Research Group.
Areas of expertise
My areas of expertise are sustainability in organisations (environmental and social) and qualitative analysis of interactions using discursive psychology. I have specific knowledge of product and supply chain sustainability, in product development/design and public procurement.
Research interests
I am particularly interested in studying conversations in business and organisation settings in which sustainability factors are discussed, for example in workplace meetings. I am interested in understanding micro discursive aspects of decision-making and social influence related to sustainability strategy.
Research methods expertise
I have experience of collecting and analysing recordings of naturally occurring discussions, and conducting and analysing semi-structured interviews. I developed expertise in discursive psychology to analyse talk-in-interaction during my PhD. I have also conducted thematic analysis when collaborating on other research projects.
Disciplinary intersections
My research spans several disciplines. I currently draw on discursive social psychology to understand sustainable business phenomena, including design and engineering decision-making, and sustainability management.
Research collaborations
I am seeking new collaborations with engineering and design scholars and practitioners, and with sustainability professionals, to study decision-making and influence through analysing workplace interactions.
Funded projects
Economic and Social Research Council postdoctoral fellowship (£108,875) ‘Developing the contribution of discursive psychology to sustainable business and circular economy research’, grant number ES/Y009916/1. (2023-2024)
Principal’s Career Development Scholarship to fund PhD research ‘Navigating expectations for sustainable product design: a discursive psychology analysis of designers’ accounts’ (2019-2022)
Key role in successful funding bid to EU Commission for 3-year research project (Make ICT Fair) and recruitment of research fellow (€3,885,000) (2017-2020)
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Book/Report › Commissioned report
Research output: Thesis › Doctoral Thesis
Cooper, L. (Creator), UK Data Service, 26 Aug 2021
DOI: 10.5255/UKDA-SN-855100, https://reshare.ukdataservice.ac.uk/855100/
Dataset
Cooper, L. (Recipient), 2024
Prize: Other distinction
Cooper, L. (Recipient), 2019
Prize: Other distinction
Cooper, L. (Recipient), 2022
Prize: Election to learned society
Cooper, L. (Speaker)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation
Cooper, L. (Recipient)
Activity: Other
Cooper, L. (Speaker)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation
Cooper, L. (Speaker)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation
Cooper, L. (Speaker)
Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation