TALK: Psychology Colloquium

Abstract: Self-regulation is the process by which people interact with their environment to achieve what they desire, whilst also preventing or avoiding negative outcomes from occurring. To do this, people need to make decisions regarding what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. These decisions are often made in dynamic and uncertain environments, in which people have competing goals and limited resources. For example, air traffic controllers need to be able to adapt to rapid changes in workload to maintain a safe and orderly flow of traffic as task demands change. The consequences of poor decision making in these environments can be disastrous. In this talk, I will provide an overview of current work developing formal models to explain how people make choices regarding the allocation of their time and effort in a dynamic environment, how they adapt to task demands, and the emotional reactions that they experience along the way.

Speaker Bio: Andrew obtained his PhD at UNSW and has been at the UQ School of Psychology since 1995, where he is now a Professor and directs the organisational psychology program. Andrew works at the intersection of organisational psychology and human factors. He leads basic and applied research into human performance and safety that has received more than $10 million in funding from ARC, NICTA, Federal and State Governments, and industry. His research examines the factors that enhance the performance, safety and effectiveness of people at work, and the mechanisms by which people manage competing demands in complex, dynamic environments.