معرفی
Torsten Masson is a Researcher in Social Psychology at the University of Leipzig, where he has been working since 2016 as a Research Associate (budget-funded since 2018) in the Professorship for Social Psychology. He has previously held research positions at Bielefeld University of Applied Sciences (2016-2018) and the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ Leipzig (2010-2016).
His educational background includes:
- Dr. rer. nat in Social Psychology from the University of Leipzig (2013-2018)
- Studies in Business Administration with focus on Economics from TU Bergakademie Freiberg (2006-2007)
- Studies in International Business Administration (European Business Studies) from Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences and University of Derby (2000-2005)
Masson's research focuses on fundamental processes of social identity, including group-based social influence (conformity and deviance to group norms), multiple social identities, threat, and collective emotions. His work also examines environmental behavior—particularly collective factors—and the perception and appraisal of environmental crises. His specific research interests include:
- Processes within and between groups (social identity, collective action, social norms, collective emotions, motivated cognition)
- Environmental psychology, sustainable consumer decisions, and ecological lifestyles
- Evaluation research in environmental and health behavior
His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on the intersection of social identity and environmental behavior, with particular emphasis on climate change action, collective responses to environmental challenges, and the role of social norms in sustainable behavior. His research often employs meta-analytic approaches to understand patterns in pro-environmental behavior across different contexts.
Among his notable achievements is the Pre-Doc Award of the University of Leipzig. He has been involved in several significant research projects including:
- EC2 - Energy Citizenship and Energy Communities for a Clean Energy Transition (EU-H2020, 2021-2024)
- SPARCS - Sustainable energy Positive & zero cARbon Communities (EU-H2020, 2019-2024)
- ExpoAware – Environmental volunteered geographic information (DFG MA 8619/1-1, 2020-2023)
- PIVO – Private Self-Provision for climate change adaptation (2018-2022)
- ECHOES - Energy Choices supporting the Energy Union (EU-H2020, 2016-2019)
Masson frequently collaborates with Immo Fritsche and other researchers in the field of environmental psychology and social identity. His work appears in high-impact journals such as Global Environmental Change, Journal of Environmental Psychology, and Psychological Review.
