Elaine Kasket Biography
Dr Elaine Kasket is a leading cyberpsychologist and Counselling Psychologist. She is an expert in how our digital choices shape our experience and relationships across the lifespan, at home and at work.
Recognising the unprecedented nature of the psychological and social dilemmas we face in a technologically saturated world, Elaine focuses on how we can deepen our wellbeing, maximise connection and relational depth, and retain our fundamental humanity in the digital era. Central to her philosophy is recognising and challenging our narratives of helplessness in the face of technology; realising the fuller extent of our power; and building more meaningful lives with and through tech.
Elaine’s new book Reboot: Reclaiming your life in a Tech Obsessed World (Elliot & Thompson, 2023), delves into the diverse roles tech plays in modern existence, including: remote/hybrid working; employer surveillance; threats to identity and autonomy; and the new phenomena of digital gestation and digital afterlives. She has also written All the Ghosts in the Machine: The Digital Afterlife of Your Personal Data (Robinson, 2019), which proposes that what happens to our data when we die provides the perfect lens for understanding the true power big tech wields over our information and our identities.
A keynote speaker, storyteller and trainer, Elaine has collaborated with clients and audiences worldwide including Netflix, TEDx, House of Beautiful Business, Santander, Hill & Knowlton Strategies, Congreso Futuro, the NHS, the British Science Festival and Latitude.
The topics she covers include:
- Beyond ‘digital detox’: Crafting your tech-life balance
In our tech-obsessed world, we often think a ‘digital detox’ is what the doctor ordered. So we try to make ourselves well by paring back on tech: using our devices less, reducing our screen time, and putting the phone out of sight. When we fail to sustain the change for long, we feel frustrated and guilty. But what if there were a better, more sustainable way to think about technology in our lives? Dive into a fresh perspective with Elaine, one that doesn’t demonise tech or suggest we go cold turkey from it, but instead helps us do a better job of weaving technology into our lives – respecting our values, maximising technology’s benefits, and truly achieving digital wellness both at work and at home. Elaine calls for a tailored, mindful approach to tech, where you dictate your digital destiny. Let’s design your digital life, not detox from it.
· Digital dynamics: Cyberpsychology at work
Because our lives are intertwined with technology, all psychology is now cyberpsychology. Because of that, it’s crucial to decode the digital DNA of human behaviour – including our behaviour at work. As a cyberpsychologist, Elaine bridges the gap between the screen and the psyche. In this talk, she'll help you better understand the psychological nuances of remote and hybrid work environments; to make informed choices about adopting AI and other emergent technologies; and to architect a blueprint for fostering authentic connections, ensuring strong client loyalty, and supporting employee wellbeing and retention in a digitised world.
- DeathTech: Why ‘digital remains’ matter for identity, data security, and everyone on the planet
As our lives are increasingly captured in zeros and ones, we stand at the precipice of a crisis due to an overlooked phenomenon: the digital remains left behind by the departed. In today’s world, preparing for the inevitable demise of every client, customer, colleague and loved one isn’t just a niche concern – it’s a necessity. Venture with Elaine into a future where ‘dead labour’ isn’t metaphorical. In our knowledge economy, the vast vaults of data from those who have died present an untapped reservoir of value. With the capabilities of AI, we’re poised to mine this digital gold. But how far should we go? This isn’t a tale of mere data security or privacy – it’s a profound exploration of identity, ethics, the future of our digital society, and what it means to be human. Discover the immense potential, numerous pitfalls and necessary practicalities of navigating the digital afterlife. Look death in the digital eye and prepare for a tomorrow that might be closer to today than you think
· The tech ties that bind: Maintaining healthy relationships in the modern era
We live in an age of where everyone and everything is at our fingertips, but while tech can provide the connectivity, true connection is up to us. Tech can respond, but it’s our responsibility to relate. In this talk, Elaine unravels the complex web of our moment-to-moment digital decisions, the micro and macro moves we make in relationships when we’re using technology, and unpacks the ramifications of those choices on our human connections. The ways we use technology in intimate relationships – romantic partnerships, friendships, and parent-child connections – have the power to bond or break, uplift or undermine, and protect or peril. Elaine will look at how our daily decisions affect our loved ones, and how actions taken online can have unintended consequences, now and in the future. This talk is a thoughtful exploration of digital agency, helping audiences understand how we hold the power to craft or crack the ties that bind with every tap, swipe, share, or purchase of a piece of digital tech.
Elaine is a regular contributor across the media and is the host of the podcast Reboot: Your Life on Tech. She is an Honorary Professor of Psychology at the University of Wolverhampton for her body of work on life in the digital age; an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society; a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts; and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.