The digital world now being built will shape how people think, feel, and relate for decades to come.
Most of what is being built optimises for engagement and growth, without a clear understanding of psychological impacts.
At Healing Media, we keep business goals in view while placing psychological health and human impact at the centre of every decision.
Assistants, companions, health tools, and always-on agents—these are not neutral. They speak to people; people form relationships with them, and they affect how people see themselves.
The teams building products are often exceptionally skilled. But the psychological and communicational dimensions of what they are making—how a technology speaks, how people relate to it, and the influence it has—need specific expertise to understand.
Healing Media exists to close the gap.
Be it through strategic research and advisory on pre-market launch, hands-on support to design experiences, or reviews of existing products, we work with teams to build ahead of time.
We believe the next generation of serious AI products will be measured against a new standard. This standard is psychological health and well-being.
We help teams get there before it is a requirement rather than a differentiator.
She brings over twenty years of research expertise in the psychological and communicative dimensions of emerging technologies. She has advised teams building AI products in the mental health, wellbeing, and human-AI interaction space.
Before founding Healing Media, she led strategic initiatives in higher education and the commercial sector, building expertise in organisational leadership and cross-transformational projects and programmes.
She is a Founding Scholar of the British Psychoanalytic Council, a Senior Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences at the University of Roehampton, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts (FRSA).
Karen holds a PhD in Cultural Studies from the University of East London (competitive scholarship), an MSc in Social Research Methods with Distinction from the Open University (fully funded), an MA in Women's Studies and Feminist Research from the University of Manchester, and a Postgraduate Certificate in UX Design with Distinction from King's College, London. She was shortlisted for a Tech for All Churchill Fellowship in 2025 to design an AI Playbook for Mental Health.
She writes the Healing Media Newsletter, in which she explores the psychology of AI for builders, researchers, and curious readers.
Email: info@healingmedia.org