About Katy
Katy Cook is an internationally recognized expert on the intersection of technology, psychology, and ethics.
Katy is the author of The Psychology of Silicon Valley: Ethical Threats and Emotional Unintelligence in the Tech Industry, founder of the nonprofit Centre for Technology Awareness, and serves as a consultant and speaker on topics related to ethics and technology.
Katy holds a Ph.D. in Clinical, Educational, and Health Psychology from University College London, and Masters degrees in English and Psychology.
The Psychology of Silicon Valley: Ethical Threats and Emotional Unintelligence in the Tech Industry
In an era where the reach and influence of a single industry has the potential to define the future of our world, it has become apparent just how little we know about the organizations driving these changes.
The Psychology of Silicon Valley offers a revealing look inside the world’s most influential industry and how the beliefs, culture, motivations, and behaviors of Big Tech are harming society. The book explores how bad values and a lack of emotional intelligence in the industry will have lasting consequences on everything from social inequality to the future of work to our collective mental health.
Drawing on hundreds of interviews and over six years of research, Dr. Cook expertly walks readers through the psychological landscape of Silicon Valley, including its leadership, ethical, and cultural problems, and artfully explains why we cannot afford to ignore the psychology and ethics that are behind our technology any longer.
Katy Cook Consulting:Ethical, Sustainable Success
Dr. Cook’s consulting work is dedicated to helping businesses and teams navigate the future, improve organizational health, and develop ethical and effective business strategies that lead to sustainable success.
Leveraging deep knowledge across multiple disciplines and over 10 years of consulting experience, Katy helps her clients:
- Identify key ethical leverage points specific to their organizations
- Discover and implement solutions that maximize both financial success and positive social impact
- Proactively address emerging ethical demands
- Develop both business and industry specific corporate responsibility strategies
Katy also works with universities and schools to develop curriculum and build departments focused on ethics, technology, and the humanities.
Courses and Workshops
Dr. Cook’s corporate workshops focus on the intersection of psychology and business and help organizations address issues like mental health, remote working, and social impact. Courses are customized to the interests and needs of each unique audience, and can also be developed from scratch. Some popular workshops include:
- Mental Health in the Workplace
- Remote Working & Management 101
- Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace
- Unconscious Bias
- The Psychology of Change, Social Impact and Progress
Katy also offers e-learning courses on emotional intelligence.
From the blog
The Psychology of Remote Work
The shift to remote work seemed, at first glance, like set of logistical hurdles. From technology hiccups (“you’re on mute”), to finding physical space in our homes for makeshift offices (bonus points for...
January 12, 2021
Katy Cook joins Charles Miller on CoinGeek Conversations
I sat down with former BBC producer and CoinGeek Conversations host Charles Miller to have a short but incredibly fun and rich chat about...
June 16, 2020
Diversity and inclusion in the workplace
In recent decades, we’ve heard a lot about how the workplace is changing. It’s becoming younger, of course, and as our population demographics change to reflect a more diverse society...
April 6, 2020
Katy Cook Guest Essay in Exponential View
There are few people I admire in my line of work as much as Azeem Azhar. I remember the first time I heard Azeem speak at a London Futurists event at Birkberk...
March 3, 2020