Dr. Peter Chapman

I started my research career at the MRC Applied Psychology Unit in Cambridge working on a project funded by General Accident plc and exploring the "Assessment, Representation, and Detection of Risk", see for example Groeger & Chapman (1991, 1992). While working on this project, I completed a part-time PhD looking at the way feelings of risk might distort drivers' subsequent memory (e.g. Chapman and Groeger, 1992). I then worked at the Institute for Transport Studies at the University of Leeds until moving to the University of Nottingham in 1995. Since then, I have continued to explore the ways in which subjective risk might distort drivers' pattern of eye movements (e.g. Chapman & Underwood, 1998), perceptions of time (e.g. Chapman et al., 2005) and memory for events (e.g. Chapman & Underwood, 2000; Chapman and Groeger, 2004).

I also explore the other aspects of the psychology of driving such as aggression (Chapman et al., 2002). In addition to my research on risk and driving I have interests in visual memory (see my main web page for details) and in many aspects of cognition and emotion (see for example the work Georgina Cox is conducting under my supervision).

Selected Publications

Chapman, P., Cox, G. & Kirwan, C. (2005). Distortions of driversí speed and time estimates in dangerous situations. To appear in Behavioural Research in Road Safety: Fifteenth Seminar. London: Department for Transport.

Chapman, P., & Underwood, G. (2005). Does time slow down in a car crash? Danger, time perception and speed estimates. To appear in G. Underwood (Ed.), Traffic and Trasport Psychology. Oxford: Elsevier.

Chapman, P., & Groeger, J.A. (2004). Risk and the recognition of driving situations. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 18, 1231-1249.

Chapman, P., Evans, J., & Underwood, G. (2004). Anger and aggression in driving and non-driving contexts. . In Rothengatter, J.A. & Huguenin, R.D. (Eds.). Traffic and Transport Psychology. Elsevier.

Roberts, K., Chapman, P., & Underwood, G. (2004). The relationship between accidents and near-accidents in a sample of company vehicle drivers. In Rothengatter, J.A. & Huguenin, R.D. (Eds.) Traffic and Transport Psychology. Elsevier.

Underwood, G., Chapman, P., Brocklehurst, N, Underwood, G., & Crundall, D. (2003). Visual attention while driving: sequences of eye fixations made by experienced and novice drivers. Ergonomics, 46,629-646.

Underwood, G., Chapman, P. Berger, Z, & Crundall, D. (2003). Driving experience, attentional focusing, and the recall of recently inspected events. Transportation Research F: Psychology and Behaviour, 6, 289-304.

Chapman, P., Crundall, D. Phelps, N., & Underwood, G. (2003). The effects of driving experience on visual search and subsequent memory for hazardous driving situations. In Behavioural Research in Road Safety: Thirteenth Seminar, pp.253-266. London: Department for Transport.

Chapman, P., Underwood, G., & Roberts, K. (2002). Visual search patterns in trained and untrained novice drivers. Transportation Research Part F, 5, 157-167.

Underwood, G., Crundall, D., & Chapman, P. (2002). Selective searching while driving: the role of experience in hazard detection and general surveillance. Ergonomics, 45, 1-12.

Chapman, P., Crundall, D., Phelps, N., & Underwood, G. (2002). Police driversí visual search in hazardous situations. In Behavioural Research in Road Safety: Twelfth Seminar, pp.57-67. London: Department for Transport.

Chapman, P., King, S. & Underwood, G. (2002). The role of driving experience in searching road scenes. In Behavioural Research in Road Safety: Eleventh Seminar. London: Department for Transport Local Government and the Regions.

Chapman, P., Roberts, K. & Underwood, G. (2001). A study of the accidents and behaviours of company car drivers. In G. Grayson (Ed.), Behavioural Research in Road Safety: Tenth Seminar. London: HMSO.

Chapman, P.R., & Underwood, G. (2000). Forgetting near accidents: The roles of severity, culpability and experience in the poor recall of dangerous driving situations. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 14, 31-44.

Underwood, G., Chapman, P., Wright, S. & Crundall, D. (1999). Anger while driving. Transportation Research: Part F, 2, 55-68.

Chapman, P.R., Ismail, R., Avellano, T. & Underwood, G. (1999). Time-gaps while driving. In G.B. Grayson (Ed.), Behavioural Research in Road Safety 9, pp.188-200. Crowthorne, UK: Transport Research Laboratory.

Chapman, P.R., Ismail, R., & Underwood, G. (1999). Waking up at the wheel: Accidents, attention and the time-gap experience. In A.G. Gale et al. (Eds.), Vision in Vehicles 7, pp.131-138. Oxford: Elsevier.

Chapman, P.R., & Underwood, G. (1999). Looking for danger: Drivers' eye movements in hazardous situations. In A.G. Gale et al. (Eds.), Vision in Vehicles 7, pp.225-232. Oxford: Elsevier.

Chapman, P.R., & Underwood, G. (1998). Visual search of driving situations: Danger and experience. Perception, 27, 951-964.

Chapman, P.R., Underwood, G., & Roberts, K. (1998). Training novice driversí visual search. In G.B. Grayson (Ed.), Behavioural Research in Road Safety 8 (pp.95-101). Crowthorne, UK: Transport Research Laboratory.

Chapman, P.R., & Underwood, G. (1998). Visual search of dynamic scenes: Event types and the role of experience in viewing driving situations. In G. Underwood (Ed.), Eye guidance in reading and scene perception, (pp. 371-396). Oxford: Elsevier.

Groeger, J.A., & Chapman, P.R. (1997). Normative influences on decisions to offend. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 46, 265-285.

Chapman, P.R., & Underwood, G. (1997). Reporting and forgetting accidents and other driving events. In G.B. Grayson (Ed.), Behavioural Research in Road Safety 7, (pp.120-129). Crowthorne, UK: Transport Research Laboratory.

Underwood, G., Chapman, P., Wright, S., & Crundall, D. (1997). Estimating accident liability. In J.A. Rothengatter & E. Carbonell (Eds.), Traffic and transport psychology: Theory and application. Oxford: Elsevier.

Groeger, J.A., & Chapman, P.R. (1996). Judgement of traffic scenes: The role of danger and difficulty. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 10, 349-364.

Groeger, J.A., Chapman, P.R., & Stove, A.G. (1994). Following more safely: Effects of the DETER in-car headway advisory system. In S.A. Robertson (Ed.), Contemporary Ergonomics, pp. 199-204. London: Taylor & Francis.

Chapman, P.R., & Groeger, J.A. (1992). Subjective risk and subsequent memory. In G. B. Grayson (Ed.), Behavioural research in road safety 2, pp. 44-52. Crowthorne, UK: Transport Research Laboratory.

Groeger, J.A., & Chapman, P.R. (1992). Developing an understanding of danger: Contributions of experience and age. In G.B. Grayson (Ed.), Behavioural research in road safety 2, pp. 37-43. Crowthorne, UK: Transport Research Laboratory.

Groeger, J.A., & Chapman, P.R. (1991). The unknown risks we run: Feelings of danger and accident frequency when driving. In G.B. Grayson and J.F. Lester (Eds.), Behavioural research in road safety, pp. 98-106. Crowthorne, UK: Transport and Road Research Laboratory.

Groeger, J.A., & Chapman, P.R. (1990). Errors and bias in assessments of danger and frequency of traffic situations. Ergonomics, 33, 1349-1363.