PhD Studentship: The application of Human Factors methods for cross-cultural comparisons of road sa

Road traffic accidents claim the lives of more than 1.25 million people each year, 90% of these deaths occur in Low-and Middle-Income countries (LIMC) (World Health Organisation (WHO), 2015). As the ninth global leading cause of death, road traffic injuries represent a major pandemic (WHO, 2015). To address this rising global health issue, the University of Southampton’s Transportation Research Group (TRG), in collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine, has been funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) to form a Research Group on Global Road Safety to implement the Socio-Technical systems Approach to Road Safety (STARS) project (see http://www.nihr.ac.uk/globalhealth). We work in partnership with four Low-Middle Income Countries (LMICs); Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Strathmore University, Kenya, Tsinghua University, China and National University of Civil Engineering, Vietnam, in order to address the issue of road safety in these countries.

As part of this project consortium, a PhD is being offered in Human Factors Engineering to investigate the application of Human Factors methods for cross-cultural comparisons of road safety systems (i.e. what methods are most appropriate in different cultural contexts, are methods applicable in all cultural contexts etc.). This research will seek to assess the validity and reliability of a range Human Factors methods, and might include but is not limited to the Risk Management Framework, Event Analysis of Systemic Teamwork, and Verbal Protocol Analysis.

Full funding is available for a UK student. The candidate must have a strong background (Undergraduate or Masters or equivalent professional experience) in the field of Psychology, Ergonomics, or Human Factors and be able to work effectively in a research team. We are seeking a motivated individual who will bring their own ideas to this important topic area.

For informal enquiries about the project, please contact Dr Katie Plant (k.plant@soton.ac.uk) or for general information about admissions, please contact the Graduate School Office (pgrfee@soton.ac.uk).