Yanni Liang, PhD

Yanni Liang leads the worker cooperative studies and oversees data collection and analysis for the Cooperative Governance Research Initiative. Her recent research focuses on exploring the role of worker cooperatives in mental health and well-being and examining relationship between cooperative governance and organizational economic and social performance. Prior to joining the University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives, Yanni worked as an epidemiologist at the University of Wisconsin – Madison School of Medicine and Public Health supporting the Wisconsin Division of Public Health.

Yanni’s research interests include workplace democracy, worker well-being, and the social and health impacts of work. She has published peer-reviewed research on the role of cooperatives in mental health and well-being, as well as sociopolitical influences on occupational lung diseases. Yanni holds a Ph.D. in occupational and environmental health from the University of Iowa, a master’s degree in health care informatics from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, and a B.A. in economics and international business from the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse.

Publications

• Liang, Y. (2026). Mental health in worker cooperatives: Evidence for upstream intervention. SSM – Qualitative Research in Health, 10, 100820.
• Liang, Y., McCoy, K., Tomasallo, C., Meiman, J. (2023). Social determinants of an occupational lung disease: Workers’ narratives on silicosis. SSM – Qualitative Research in Health, 3(100290).
• Liang, Y., Casteel, C., Janssen, B., Wang, K., & Rohlman, D. S. (2023). Organizational resources and social support influences on stress and depression: a comparison among cooperative and non-cooperative farmers. Journal of Agromedicine, 28(2), 177-186.
• Liang, Y., Janssen, B., Casteel, C., Nonnenmann, M., & Rohlman, D. S. (2022). Agricultural cooperatives in mental health: Farmers’ perspectives on potential influence. Journal of Agromedicine, 27(2), 143-153.
• Liang, Y., Wang, K., Janssen, B., Casteel, C., Nonnenmann, M., & Rohlman, D. S. (2021). Examination of symptoms of depression among cooperative dairy farmers. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(7), 3657.