Alexa Spence has primary expertise in environmental psychology, social cognition, and behaviour change. Spence chairs the People and Society research group within the School of Psychology at the University of Nottingham. Here, she supervises a number of PhD students and postdoctoral students on topics including sustainable food, acceptance of hydrogen technologies, citizen science, and well-being impacts of engaging digital technologies.
The commonality across research topics is the focus on perceptions, communications, and behaviour change and Spence has expertise in both theory and applied work here. Theoretically, Alexa has developed ideas around the psychological distance of climate change, how experiences (e.g. flooding) impact perceptions and behaviour, how emotional responses can drive reactions, and how individual and cooperative actions may differ. Her methodologies includes experimental research, survey work, and field research.
Spence often works across disciplines and liaises extensively with third sector and public sector groups. She is currently co-investigator of Horizon Digital Economy Research Institute and the Trust in Autonomous Systems hub and additionally acts as an advisor on several other academic projects as well as within the users group within the International Energy Agency’s Technology Collaboration Partnership. Professional memberships include the International Environmental Psychology Network, the British Environmental Psychology Society, and the International Society for Study of Digital Footprints (ISSDF).
She has achieved over 70 peer reviewed publications in high impact journals including Nature Climate Change, Nature Energy, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In addition to her research activities, Spence teaches at an undergraduate and postgraduate level at the University of Nottingham, and is the Deputy Director of Research within the School of Psychology as well as the Fellowships Lead.
See Professor Alexa Spence and her colleague Professor James talking about their smart data research at the Digital Footprints 2025 and meet our other Smart Data Research UK accelerator teams.
