Sophie Le Bellu

I'm currently working as a Marie Curie research fellow on a two-year project entitled "Risky Decision-Making: opening the human black box". It aims to answer the following research and operational question: how can we gather and study real-world data on a cognitive process such as decision-making, in risky situations, via digital ethnography methods?

This project expands my PhD research which focused on the development of a methodology for capturing and transferring tacit know-how embodied in professional gestures of nuclear power plant operators.

I graduated with a Bachelor of Science (Licence) in Biology at Bordeaux University in 2005 and an Engineering/ Master of Science degree in Cognitics, at Ecole Nationatiole Superieure de Cognitique (ENSC), Polytechnic Institute of Bordeaux in 2007.

My PhD in Cognitive Sciences, completed in 2011, was funded by a CIFRE grant involving the French Research Ministry, EDF Research & Development, and the Cognitics and Human Factors team-IMS Laboratory (affiliated with CNRS) at Bordeaux University.

My PhD research was focused on the development of a methodology for capturing and transferring tacit know-how embodied in professional gestures of nuclear power plant operators. I also created a new type of multimedia training software which allows operators to learn directly through the real-time experience of experts. This device is called MAP for Multimedia platform for APprenticeship.

Between 2007 and 2013, I worked as a consultant at Dédale and INERIS, specialising in ergonomics and, human and organisational factors, and since 2010, I have lectured on these topics. In 2011, I became an associate-researcher in the Cognitics and Human Factors team/IMS Laboratory at Bordeaux University, and continue to work with them.

I currently work as a Research Fellow within the Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science (DPBS) at LSE which is funded by an Intra-European Marie Curie grant

My approach is transdisciplinary and naturalistic.

I approach my areas of research interests from the lens of ergonomics, cognitive sciences, cognitive and social psychology. I am interested in the following topics:

- Knowledge management in organisations
- Capitalisation and transfer of experience and professional know-how
- Professional training
- Work digitisation
- Video ethnography for studying real-life situations
- First-person perspective ethnography
- Information and time management in professional contexts
- Decision-making at operational and managerial levels
- Accessibility and disability inclusion

I lecture in the half-unit option on Organisational and Social Decision-Making (PS445) lead by Dr. Tom Reader.

Since 2010, I have also been lecturing the following courses in the Master’s program at Ecole Nationale Superieure de Cognitique (ENSC), France:

• Knowledge management and organization (3rd year Bachelor and Master’s level)
• Ergonomics of human-system interfaces (Master’s level)
• Theories of memory, knowledge and representations (Bachelor’s level)
• Help and substitute systems for disabled people: universal design and communication (Master’s level)
• Designing of training systems (Master’s level).

Publications in peer-reviewed journal 

• Le Bellu S., Lahlou S., Nosulenko V., Samoylenko E. (Accepted). A Framework For Studying and Passing on Manual Work Activities: From an Empirical Research to a Method. Le Travail Humain. Numéro Spécial “L’analyse de l’activité, quelles constantes et quels renouvellements ?”

• Le Bellu, S., Le Blanc, B., Di Benedetto, S. (Accepted). De la R&D à l’industrialisation d’un dispositif de gestion organisationnelle des savoirs d’experts : le cas d’une grande entreprise française. Management & Avenir.

• Le Bellu, S. (Accepted). Learning the secrets of the craft through the real-time experience of experts: capturing and transferring professional expert tacit knowledge to novices. Perspectives interdisciplinaires sur le travail et la santé (PISTES).
  
  
• Lahlou, S., Le Bellu, S., & Boesen-Mariani, S. (2015). Subjective Evidence Based Ethnography: Method and Applications. Integrative Psychological & Behavioral Science, 49(2), 216–238. 

• Le Bellu, S., & Le Blanc, B. (2012). How to characterize professional gestures to operate tacit know-how transfer? Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management, 10(2), 142–153.

• Le Bellu, S., Lahlou, S., & Nosulenko, V. (2010). Capter et transférer le savoir incorporé dans un geste professionnel. Social Science Information, 49(3), 371–413.

• Le Bellu, S., Lahlou, S., & Le Blanc, B. (2009). Comment capter le savoir incorporé dans un geste métier du point de vue de l’opérateur? ISDM : Information Sciences for Decision Making (36), ISSN 1265-495.

Conferences with proceedings

• Le Bellu, S., Le Blanc, B., Di Benedetto S. (2014). Ethnographie vidéo et dynamiques cognitives pour l’apprentissage professionnel : exemple du processus MAP mis en place à EDF. (Video ethnography and cognitive dynamics for professional training: example of MAP process at EDF). Paper presented at the Gestion des connaissances, Société et Organisations Conference (GECSO’14). June 04‑06, 2014, Aix-en-Provence.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S (2012). Capitalization and transfer of professional know-how: development of a multimedia journeyman system for novices’ training. Paper presented at the 5th International Conference on Cognitive Science. 19-23 June 2012, Kaliningrad, Russia.  
  
  
• Le Bellu, S., & Le Blanc, B. (2011). Main Descriptors of Professional Gestures, Regarding to Their Intergenerational Transfer. Paper presented at the 8th International Conference on Intellectual Capital, Knowledge Management & Organisational Learning The Institute for Knowledge and Innovation Southeast Asia (IKI-SEA) of Bangkok University, Bangkok, Thailand
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2009). Comment capter le savoir incorporé dans un geste technique à l’aide d’outils numériques? (How to capture knowledge embodied in a technical gesture using digital tools ?). Paper presented at the Gestion des connaissances, Société et Organisations Conference (GECSO’09). May 14‑15, 2009, Bordeau

Research seminars and workshops

• Le Bellu, S. (2013). Capitaliser et transmettre les gestes professionnels. Développement d’un dispositif multimédia pour outiller les formations. Doctoral seminar, Ergonomics Lab, ENSC Bordeaux. January 31, 2013
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2013). First person perspective digital ethnography for industrial vocational training purposes: Example of Multimedia platform for APprenticeship (MAP). First Person Perspective Digital Ethnography - 2013 Seminar Series. January 18, 2013, London School of Economics, Institute of Social Psychology, London.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2012). Capitaliser et transmettre les gestes professionnels : développement d’un dispositive multimedia pour outiller les formations. Seminar of the Gestures, Automatisms, Movements (GAM) Group, Work Psychology Team, CNAM, Paris. March 09, 2012, CNAM, Paris.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2011). Capitalizing and transferring experiential knowledge: an anthropocentric approach. Subjective video, goals and cognition. London School of Economics-Institute of Social Psychology. Doctoral Seminar. February 22, 2011 London School of Economics, London.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2010). Multimedia Platform for APprenticeship (MAP). To capture and transfer the know-how embodied in professional activity. London School of Economics-Institute of Social Psychology Research Seminar. December 14, 2010, London School of Economics, London.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2010). Making Multimedia platform for APprenticeship (MAP). How to transfer the know-how embodied in professional gestures with video techniques, for training. Séminaire Digitization and Transfer of Individual Experience: Recent Progress and Trends for Next 15 Years Seminar. July 13, 2010. Maison des Sciences de l’Homme, Paris.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2010). Multimedia platform for APprenticeship (MAP). To capture and transfer the know-how embodied in professional gestures with video techniques, for training. EDF R&D INTEP Seminar – Spring Research. June 15, 2010, Chatou.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2009). Aide numérisée au compagnonnage métier pour une capitalisation durable des savoir-faire. (Introduction of a digital help for journeyman in the energy sector.) Doctoral Seminar. SINETICS-EDF R&D. November 05, 2009, Clamart.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2008). Mise en place d’une aide numérique au compagnonnage métier. (Setting up a digital help for journeyman in the energy sector). Doctoral Seminar SINETICS-EDF R&D. December 16, 2008, Clamart.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2008). Techniques multimédia pour capitaliser et transmettre les gestes métier. (Multimedia techniques for capitalizing and transmitting professional gestures). Innovations pour le Programme d’Evolution du SIT nuCléaire (INPEC) Seminar - EDF R&D. September 25, 2008. 

Unpublished work and other productions

• Le Bellu, S. (2011). Capitalisation des savoir-faire et des gestes professionnels dans le milieu industriel. Mise en place d'une aide numérique au compagnonnage métier dans le secteur de l'énergie. Thesis, Bordeaux University, Bordeaux. http://www.theses.fr/2011BOR21825
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2010). Livrable MAP3 du projet « Nouvelles Solutions pour la Formation » : protocole de recueil de l’expertise (version finale). (Deliverable MAP3 of the project "New Solutions for Training": protocol for the capture of know-how (final version)). Internal report EDF. 30 pages. August 2010.
• Le Bellu, S. (2010). Livrable MAP2 du projet « Nouvelles Solutions pour la Formation » : protocole de recueil de l’expertise (version 2) : synthèse des observations de terrain. (Deliverable MAP2 of the project "New Solutions for Training": synthesis of the observations (version 2)). Internal report EDF. 29 pages. February 2010.
  
  
• Le Bellu, S. (2009). Livrable MAP1 du projet « Nouvelles Solutions pour la Formation » : protocole de recueil de l’expertise (version 1). (Deliverable MAP1 of the project "New Solutions for Training": provisional protocol for the capture of know-how (version 1)). Internal Report EDF. 20 pages. May 2009.
  
  
• Belin, A. & Le Bellu, S. (2009). Maquette V3 de support pédagogique multimédia. (V3-mock of Multimedia Platform for Apprenticeship (MAP)). Flash mock for UFPI-EDF (EDF training branch). August 2009.