Professor Mark Levine

Professor of Social Psychology

Profile

I am a social psychologist interested in the role of social identity and group processes in prosocial and anti-social behavior. Over the last 25 years I have established a reputation as a leading researcher in the social psychology of helping behaviour in general and bystander behaviour in particular. More recently I have moved towards interdisciplinary work at the intersection of psychology and technology – leading large multi-site projects which include computer scientists, software engineers, roboticists and HCI researchers. My theoretical focus has been on the utility of the concept of social identity for understanding the dynamics of behaviour in the digital age. I have explored the interactions of social identity and technology in violence prevention, privacy, security, health/well-being and environmental/sustainability behaviours. I have pioneered innovative research practices and analysis of digital data which help to advance the discipline of psychology and the wider academic community. My research projects have included experiments in labs and in virtual reality, using smartphones to collect data ‘in the wild’, the micro-behavioural analysis of CCTV footage of public space interactions; analysis of naturally occurring on-line text, large scale surveys, focus groups and interviews.

My research work has been supported by over £15 million worth of grant income, from research councils, charities, public sector organisations and industry partners. I have advised government departments, city councils and police forces about how to encourage prosocial behaviour and tackle anti-social behaviour in public places. I have worked with Crime and Disorder Partnerships, police and universities to deliver in-situ interventions to tackle anti-social behavior in the night-time economy. I currently work with third sector organisations like AGE-UK Exeter to deliver technology-enhanced ‘circles of support’ for older people with co-morbid health conditions. I have also been part of co-creation work with the creative industries (including games makers, puppeteers, magicians and choreographers) to explore digital transformations of public spaces.

Selected Publications

Third-parties, violence and conflict resolution: the role of group size and collective action in the micro-regulation of violence
Levine, M., Taylor, P., Best, R. 03/2011 In: Psychological Science. 22, 3, p. 406-412.
Journal article

Would I be helped?: Cross-national CCTV footage shows that intervention is the norm in public conflicts
Philpot, R., Liebst, L.S., Levine, M., Bernasco, W., Lindegaard, M.R. 1/02/2020 In: American Psychologist. 75, 1, p. 66-75. 10 p.
Journal article

ASIA: Automated Social Identity Assessment using linguistic style
Koschate, M., Naserian, E., Dickens, L., Stuart, A., Russo, A., Levine, M. 31/08/2021 In: Behavior Research Methods. 53, 4, p. 1762-1781. 20 p.
Journal article

Evacuation Behavior in a Subway Train Emergency: A Video-based Analysis
Philpot, R., Levine, M. 1/02/2022 In: Environment and Behavior. 54, 2, p. 383-411. 29 p.
Journal article

Cross-National CCTV Footage Shows Low Victimization Risk for Bystander Interveners in Public Conflicts
Liebst, L.S., Philpot, R., Levine, M., Lindegaard, M.R. 1/01/2021 In: Psychology of Violence. 11, 1, p. 11-18. 8 p.
Journal article

DSI: Theory-driven machine learning in complex social situations
01/09/2024 → 31/08/2026
Research

Reimagining research practices: towards a sustainable, ethical and inclusive future
01/05/2024 → 30/04/2026
Research

SL: TAS Hub Early Career Researcher Award 2023 (Anastasia Kordoni)
01/10/2023 → 31/07/2024
Research

SL: The Psychology of Interoperability: Building Better Multi-Agency Counter-Terrorism Training (INTEROP)
01/10/2022 → 30/09/2025
Research

SL: Testing assumptions regarding potential behavioural responses during an emergency
09/05/2022 → 09/05/2023
Research

RBOC N+ - Resilience Beyond Observed Capability
21/03/2022 → 20/03/2025
Research

Detecting Hybrid Social Identities: A Computational Analysis of Influence and Resilience in Online RWE Communities
01/12/2021 → 30/09/2025
Research

REASON: REsilient Autonomous SOcio-cyber-physical AgeNts (Trustworthy Autonomous Systems Node in Resilience)
01/11/2020 → 31/10/2024
Research

Analysis of CCTV footage to understand behavioural responses during emergency incidents in public places
22/09/2020 → 17/05/2021
Research

Socio-technical resilience in software development (STRIDE)
01/09/2020 → 29/02/2024
Research

Challenging the Bystander Effect via Documentary Film
01/02/2019 → 31/01/2022
Research

Delivering Expertise and Capability in CCTV Analysis of Disasters and Emergencies (DEC-CADE)
01/02/2019 → 31/07/2019
Research

Citizen Forensics
01/01/2019 → 31/08/2022
Research

Household-Supplier Energy Market
01/01/2019 → 31/03/2020
Research

SAUSE: Secure, Adaptive, Usable Software Engineering
01/01/2019 → 31/03/2024
Research

Why Johnny doesn’t write secure software? Software development by the masses
01/01/2019 → 31/12/2021
Research

Identi-scope:
01/10/2011 → 07/05/2013
Research

  • Cyber Security Research Centre (Psychology)
  • Security Lancaster
  • Security Lancaster (Behavioural Science)