معرفی
Professor Julie Brownlie is a leading sociologist at the University of Edinburgh's School of Social and Political Science, specializing in the emotional dimensions of everyday life. Her position as Personal Chair of Sociology reflects her significant contributions to understanding how emotions, trust, and relationships intersect with broader social processes.
Her research centers on the sociology of emotions, particularly examining how individuals navigate emotional lives within ordinary contexts and digital spaces. Key interests include documentary analysis of emotional practices, trust dynamics in social relationships, and the digital mediation of emotions. Her work bridges micro-level emotional experiences with macro-level social structures, focusing on how cultural shifts reshape personal relationships.
Recent publications reveal a strong trajectory toward kindness studies and digital emotional infrastructure, with increasing emphasis on policy applications. From analyzing Twitter-based emotional support (2018-2019) to developing frameworks for kindness infrastructure in public policy (2019-2024), her work demonstrates consistent evolution from theoretical emotion studies toward practical implementations in social policy and digital governance.
Her research has secured substantial funding including ESRC grants for projects like The Spaces for Sharing collaboration and the EMoTICON programme, alongside a Leverhulme Research Fellowship for Telling Good Stories. She actively engages policymakers through initiatives like The Kindness Sessions seminar series, which directly informed Scotland's Infrastructures of Kindness report.
Beyond publications, Brownlie contributes through transdisciplinary collaborations such as the multi-institution Spaces for Sharing project examining online emotional sharing during crises, and the Livable Lives study exploring everyday kindness in community contexts. Her methodological approach uniquely combines traditional documentary analysis with innovative digital ethnography.
