Short description
Ph.D., environmental psychologist, post-doc at the Faculty of Psychology, RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Germany
Places of work
Laura currently works as a researcher and lecturer in the environmental psychology group, Faculty of Psychology, University of Koblenz-Landau, Germany. She is a member of the Task Force "Human, Climate, Sustainability" of the German Psychological Association and of the Early Career Advisory Board of the Journal of Environmental Psychology.
She studied Psychology at the University of Konstanz, Germany, and the University of Padova, Italy. After graduating, she worked as a research assistant in the personality and social psychology group at the Otto-von-Guericke University of Magdeburg, Germany, and the media psychology group at the University of Hohenheim, Germany.
Moreover, she was a visiting scholar at the School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, England.
Summary of research
identification with all humanity, pro-environmental behaviour and policy support; sustainability communication; climate change, environmental protection and sustainable development; mind-body practice (yoga, meditation); raising the salience of IWAH within sustainability communication
Research interests
General research focus: Psychological predictors of pro-environmental behaviour and policy support; sustainability communication; climate change
Research on IWAH: Relation between IWAH and engagement for environmental protection and sustainable development; cultivating IWAH through mind-body practice (yoga, meditation); raising the salience of IWAH within sustainability communication
In the Identification with All Humanity Lab, I am working on a project that aims at a cross-cultural comparison of IWAH and its correlates.
Publications
Selected publications:
Loy, L. S., Steppler, K. Kliachko, I., Kuhlmann, J., Menzel, C., Schick, O., & Reese, G. (2024). A virtually-induced overview effect? How seeing the world from above through a simulated space tour is related to awe, global identity and pro-environmental behaviour. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 99, 102428. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2024.102428
Trani, L., Menzel, C., & Loy, L. S. (2024). Travel the world to feel part of it? The relations between long-term stays abroad, global identity, and nature connectedness. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 102, 102049. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2024.102049
Loy, L. S., Scheuermann, A., Prestele, E., & Reese, G. (2024). Cultivating connectedness: Effects of an app-based compassion meditation course on changes in global identity, nature connectedness, and pro-environmental behaviour. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 95, 102260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2024.102260
Loy, L. S., Bauer, M., & Wullenkord, M. C. (2024). How dare we? The relation between language use, global identity, and climate activism. Global Environmental Psychology, 2, Article e11101. https://doi.org/10.5964/gep.11101
Loy, L. S. & Reese, G. (2023). Global verbunden, global aktiv? Wie eine globale Identität mit Klimaschutz zusammenhängt. In-Mind. https://de.in-mind.org/article/global-verbunden-global-aktiv-wie-eine-globale-identitaet-mit-klimaschutz-zusammenhaengt
Berneiser, J. M., Becker, A. C., & Loy, L. S. (2022). Give up flights? Psychological predictors of intentions and policy support to reduce air travel. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 926639. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.926639
Loy, L. S., Clemens, A., & Reese, G. (2022). Mind-body practice is related to pro-environmental engagement through self-compassion and global identity rather than to self-enhancement. Mindfulness, 13, 660-673. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-021-01823-1
Loy, L. S., Reese, G., & Spence, A. (2022). Facing a common human fate. Relating global identity and climate change mitigation. Political Psychology, 43(3), 563-581. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12781
Loy, L. S., Tröger, J., Prior, P., & Reese, G. (2021). Global citizens – global jet setters? The relation between global identity, sufficiency orientation, travelling, and a socio-ecological transformation of the mobility system. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 622842. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.622842
Reese, G., Hamann, K. R. S., Heidbreder, L. M., Loy, L. S., Menzel, C., Neubert, S., Tröger, J., Wullenkord, M. C. (2020). SARS-Cov-2 and environmental protection: A collective psychology agenda for environmental psychology research, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2020.101444
Loy, L. S. & Spence, A. (2020). Reducing, and bridging, the psychological distance of climate change. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2020.101388
Loy, L. S. & Reese, G. (2019). Hype and hope? Mind-body practice predicts pro-environmental engagement through global identity. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2019.101340
Loy, L. S. (2018). Communicating climate change. How proximising climate change and global identity predict engagement (Dissertation). Stuttgart: Universität Hohenheim.
Conference & presentations
Selected talks:
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Loy, L.S., Masur, P.K., Spence, A., Tam, K.-P., Wlodarczyk, A., Kirchhoff, S., Kuhlmann, J., Scheuermann, A., Wagner, I., Bertin, P., Carmona, M., Sparkman, D., & Hamer, K. & many more collaborators in 45 countries (2024, September). Global identity & climate protection in light of country-specific climate risks – A cross-cultural comparison in 45 nations. Presentation at the 53rd conference of the German Psychological Association (DGPs) and Austrian Psychological Association (ÖGP), Vienna (Austria).
Loy, L. S., Bill, S., Clemens, A., Dressel, L., Herkommer, L., Herrmann, K., Kindler A.-C., Kögel, M., Kurschat, C., Nau, N., Prestele, E., Reiter, L., Rudloff, I., Scheuermann, A., Spang, L., & Reese, G. (2023, November). Connected to all the people. The relation between mind-body practice, global identity and pro-environmental engagement. Presentation at the International Conference on Environmental Mindfulness, Rome (Italy).
Loy, L. S., Steppler, K., Kliachko, I., Kuhlmann, J., Schick, O., & Reese, G. (2023, June). How a virtual overview effect is related to global identity and pro-environmental behaviour. Presentation at the International Conference on Environmental Psychology (ICEP), Aarhus (Denmark).
Loy, L. S., Clemens, A., & Reese, G. (2022, September). Boosting or quieting the ego? Mind-body practice is related to pro-environmental engagement through self-compassion and global identity rather than to self-enhancement. Presentation at the 52nd conference of the German Psychological Association (DGPs), Hildesheim (Germany).
Loy, L. S. (2022, April). Global identity - a path towards environmental protection? Invited talk at the Faculty of Education colloquium, University of Haifa (Israel).
Loy, L. S., Scheuermann, A., Prestele, E., Fissler, P., & Reese, G. (2021, October). Cultivating connectedness: How an app-based mind-body practice increases global identity and pro-environmental engagement. Presentation at the International Conference on Environmental Psychology (ICEP), Siracusa (Italy).
Loy, L. S., Tröger, J., Prior, P., & Reese, G. (2021, July). Global citizens – global jet setters? The relation between global identity, travelling, and the support of a decarbonized mobility system. Presentation at the International Society of Political Psychology's (ISPP) Annual Meeting, virtual event.
Loy, L. S., Scheuermann, A., & Reese, G. (2020, July). Meditating for connectedness? How a mind-body practice intervention impacts global identity and pro-environmental engagement. Presentation at the International Society of Political Psychology's (ISPP) Annual Meeting, virtual event.
Loy L. S., Leyendecker, A., Sefovic, A., Speckert, K., & Reese, G. (2019, September). Hype and hope? Mind-body practice predicts pro-environmental engagement through global identity. Presentation at the International Conference on Environmental Psychology (ICEP), Plymouth (UK).
Loy, L. S. & Spence, A. (2017, September). Bridging the distance of climate change communication. Presentation at the International Conference on Environmental Psychology (ICEP), A Coruna (Spain).