MA, MPhil, PhD, FHEA
Senior Lecturer
- About
-
- Email Address
- a.irwin@abdn.ac.uk
- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 273003
- Office Address
School of Psychology William Guild Building Room T8 Kings College Old Aberdeen AB24 3FX
- School/Department
- School of Psychology
Qualifications
- PhD Psychology2008 - University of Nottingham
Internal Memberships
Research groups
- Lead of the Applied Psychology and Human Factors research group
- Lead of the Non-technical skills in agriculture research group
- Co-lead Qualitative research group
Internal groups / committees
- Psychology impact group.
- Education committee.
- Research steering group.
Administration / course co-ordination
- Ondemand Human Factors in Industrial Practice course co-ordinator
- Ondemand Safety Critical Skills in Industry course co-ordinator
- Ondemand Organisational Culture and Conflict course co-ordinator
- Ondemand Organisational safety and risk co-ordinator.
- Psychology impact co-ordinator.
Latest Publications
Listen, act and support: An investigation into individual and organisational incivility management in veterinary practice.
Veterinary RecordContributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/vetr.4840
- [ONLINE] Preprint
Not all uncivil behaviours are equal: exploring responses to incivility in veterinary practice using vignettes
ErgonomicsContributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] http://10.31219/osf.io/jfq7e
- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2024.2343939
'Having a grand view of what the day entails’: a qualitative investigation of the non-technical skills utilised by Mountain Guides.
Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism, vol. 43, 100688Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThinking five or six actions ahead: investigating the non-technical skills used with UK forestry chainsaw operations
Safety Science, vol. 163, 106112Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2023.106112
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/20345/1/Irwin_etal_SS_Thinking_Five_Or_VoR.pdf
- [ONLINE] Link to pre-print
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
The practice of online internships
The Routledge International Handbook of Work Integrated Learning. 3 edition. Routledge, pp. 271-280, 18 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters
Prizes and Awards
Winner Principal's Prize for Public Engagement with Research. 2021.
Nominated for Principal’s Prize for successful industry engagement. 2020.
Runner-up Principal's Prize for Public Engagement with Research. 2019.
Best thesis supervisor. University of Aberdeen Student-led Teaching Awards. 2016.
- Research
-
Research Overview
- The examination of Non-Technical Skills (teamwork, communication, situation awareness, cognitive readiness etc) and factors influencing non-technical skills (such as mission type, performance limitations, context etc) in industries including:
- Agriculture
- Aviation (helicopters, commercial and general aviation fixed-wing)
- Healthcare
- Forestry
- Fishing
- Mountain guiding
- The experience of rudeness and incivility at work including:
- The impact of status (both instigator and victim) on the perception of, and response to, incivility.
- The utility of different coping mechanisms to mitigate the impact of incivility.
- How context might influence the incivility experience.
- I am particularly interested in the impact of incivility in veterinary practice.
- Risk normalisation and cognitive bias in high-risk industrial and sport settings:
- Normalisation of deviance (shortcuts and workarounds) within the energy industry.
- Habituation to risk in extreme sport settings.
- Risk normalisation in high risk workplace settings e.g. farming, fishing.
Research Areas
Knowledge Exchange
Irwin, A., Perkins,J., Branigan,H.& Trevethan, C. (2022). Supporting student resilience is about moving from surviving to thriving. https://wonkhe.com/blogs/supporting-student-resilience-is-about-moving-from-surviving-to-thriving/
Irwin A. & Perkins, J. (2021). Are online internships the future of work experience, or just a pandemic remedy for student employability? https://wonkhe.com/blogs/are-online-internships-the-future-of-work-experience-or-just-a-pandemic-remedy-for-student-employability/Guest blog for the National Farmers Union (2020): https://www.nfus.org.uk/news/blog/farm-safety-week-guest-blog-dr-amy-irwin-ntsag-research-group-university-of-aberdeen
Article for Press & Journal discussing email communication (2020): https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/opinion/2239097/dr-amy-irwin-dr-alexandra-cleland-simple-steps-to-get-it-right-when-you-write/
Irwin, A. (2020). Tackling rudeness in Higher Education. WonkHE. https://wonkhe.com/blogs/tackling-rudeness-in-higher-education/
Appearance on BBC News Scotland, based on Landward episode (Nov, 2019). https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-50318921
Appearance on Landward (Nov, 2019). https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000b4gy
Article for Press & Journal discussing Applied Psychology (Oct, 2019): https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/opinion/columnists/1857252/dr-amy-irwin-moving-out-of-the-lab-and-into-the-real-world/
Irwin, A. & Trevethan, C. (Oct, 2019). Five ways rudeness can actually be a positive experience. The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/five-ways-rudeness-can-actually-be-a-positive-experience-125447
Irwin, A. & Lipan, G. (March, 2019). Students this is how you can stand out from the crowd in a very competitive job market. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/students-this-is-how-you-can-stand-out-from-the-crowd-in-a-very-competitive-job-market-112541
Irwin, A. (August, 2018). Does rudeness have a legitimate place in politics? The case for and against. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/does-rudeness-have-a-legitimate-place-in-politics-the-case-for-and-against-99420
Appearance on STV Aberdeen, North and Tayside (June, 2018). Financial pressure may lead to farmer risk taking. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqBj2s-FQdM&feature=share
Irwin, A. & Hamlet, O. (May, 2018). How situation awareness could save your life. The Conversation. http://theconversation.com/how-situation-awareness-could-save-your-life-96032
Irwin, A. (April, 2018). Risky Business? Guest blog, Farm Safety Foundation. https://www.yellowwellies.org/risky-business/
Irwin, A. (March, 2018). That's just rude: Why being polite might not be a universal concept. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/thats-just-rude-why-being-polite-may-not-be-a-universal-concept-94187
Irwin, A. (October, 2017). Non-technical skills in farming. Guest blog, Farm Safety Foundation. https://www.yellowwellies.org/guest-blog-dr-amy-irwin-school-of-psychology-university-of-aberdeen/
Collaborations
Industrial collaborations (both current and past)
- Bristow helicopters
- CHC helicopters
- Forestry and Land Scotland
- Sodexo
- Farm Safety Foundation
- Creed consultancy
- Teagasc
- VetLed
- Mountain Assurance Ltd
- Being Human Consulting Ltd.
Academic collaborations (current and past)
- Dr Anita Weidmann (RGU)
- Dr Joy Perkins (CAD)
- Dr Ceri Trevethan (UoA)
- Dr Heather Branigan (UoA)
- Dr Oliver Hamlet (UoA)
- Dr Ruby Roberts (RGU)
- Prof Rhona Flin (UoA)
- Dr Doug Martin (UoA)
- Prof Amelia Hunt(UoA)
- Prof Liz Mossop (University of Lincoln)
- Dr Luiz Santos (University of Glasgow)
Supervision
My current supervision areas are: Psychology.
I am currently first supervisor on three PhD projects, and second supervisor on one further project. Current areas of PhD supervision include:
- Non-technical skills and factors influencing performance within forestry operations.
- Peer checking in the nuclear industry.
- Operational decision-making in the nuclear industry.
- Non-technical skills in the veterinary context
Funding and Grants
Research grants
- 2024 Trinity House maritime grant
- Safety at sea part 2: Training and skill influencing factors in commercial fishing.
- 2023 Trinity House maritime grant
- Safety at sea: exploring the safety critical skills used by commercial fishermen.
PhD Studentships
- 2024 Office for Nuclear Regulation studentship
- Investigating operational decision-making approaches, tools and techniques within the nuclear industry.
- First supervisor (Second supervisor: Dr Eva Rubinova, Third supervisor: Dr Ruby Roberts).
- Student: Apoorva Amirapu
- 2024 ESRC SGSSS DTP Collaborative studentship award
- Is double checking twice as safe? Investigating peer checking with the nuclear industry.
- First supervisor (Second supervisor: Prof Amelia Hunt).
- Student: Beatrix Duff
- 2021 ESRC SGSSS DTP Collaborative studentship award
- Staying safe in the forest: Evaluating forestry worker non-technical skills and associated influencing factors.
- First supervisor (second supervisor: Dr Ceri Trevethan, third supervisor: Prof Rhona Flin, industrial supervisor: Dr Jason Liggins)
- Student: Sofia Johansson
- 2020 Energy Institute PhD studentship award
- Combating bias on the frontline: Investigating cognitive bias and risk normalisation within the energy industry
- First supervisor (second supervisor: Dr Doug Martin, third supervisor: Dr Ruby Roberts)
- Student: Nejc Sedlar
- 2019 ESRC SGSSS DTP Collaborative Studentship award
- Considering culture in the cockpit: Cultural influences on crew resource management.
- First supervisor (second supervisor: Dr Devin Ray, third supervisor: Prof Rhona Flin)
- Student: Anna Kaminska
- 2017 ESRC SGSSS DTP Collaborative Studentship award (+3)
- Its all about the mission: An assessment of factors influencing non-technical skills in offshore and emergency helicopter teams.
- First supervisor (second supervisor: Prof Rhona Flin)
- Student: Oliver Hamlet
- 2016 ESRC SGSSS SDS Studentship award (1+3)
- Mind the gap: An investigation into the factors influencing student, academic and employer perceptions of required graduate attributes.
- Joint first supervisor with Dr Emily Nordmann (second supervisors: Dr Joy Perkins & Prof Louise Phillips)
- Student: Gabi Lipan
- 2014 ESRC SGSSS DTP Collaborative Studentship award (+3)
- Product Safety Culture: A new variant of safety culture
- Second supervisor (First supervisor: Prof Rhona Flin)
- Student: Lucia Suhanyiova
Impact Grants
- 2023 Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation grant:
- Lead applicant (industrial collaborator: VetLed, Post-doc: Ilinca-Ruxandra Tone).
- Funding to develop on incivility toolkit for veterinary practice.
- 2022 Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation grant
- Lead applicant (industrial collaborator: Forestry Land Scotland)
- Funding to develop a behavioural change technique toolkit for Forestry Land Scotland.
- 2022 Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation grant
- Co-applicant (Lead applicant: Prof Amelia Hunt)
- Funding to examine visual search patterns on helicopter landing approaches.
- 2021 Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation grant
- Lead applicant (co-investigator: Ilinca-Ruxandra Tone, Industrial collaborator: Kura Human Factors).
- Funding to develop CRM-style training for farmers.
- 2020 Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation grant
- Lead applicant (co-investigator: Oliver Hamlet)
- Funding to develop practical tools associated with non-technical skills in helicopter flight.
- 2019 REF 2021 Impact Support Award
- Lead investigator (Co-investigators: Oliver Hamlet, Ilinca Ruxandra-Tone, Gabi Lipan)
- Funding to produce a Farm Safety Roadshow, attend Human Factors events and support three student internships.
- 2018 ESRC Business Boost award
- Lead investigator (Co-investigators: Oliver Hamlet, Ilinca Ruxandra-Tone, Gabi Lipan)
- Funding to develop a website for the Applied Psychology and Human Factors group and produce three webinars.
- 2017 Impact, Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation Award
- The Human Factor in Agriculture: Introducing non-technical skills (NTS) to UK Agriculture.
- Lead Investigator (Co-investigator: Dr Emily Nordmann)
- Funding provided to support NTS awareness event and the creation of a website
Teaching and Learning based grants
- 2022 Learning and Teaching Enhancement Programme
- Steps to resilience
- Co-investigator (Lead investigator: Dr Ceri Treventhan, Co-investigators: Dr Joy Perkins, Dr Heather Branigan)
- 2021 Learning and Teaching Enhancement Programme
- Building student resilience through course development - moving from surviving to thriving
- Lead investigator (Co-investigators: Dr Joy Perkins, Dr Heather Branigan, Dr Ceri Trevethan)
- 2017 Learning and Teaching Enhancement Programme
- Telling tales: Using student narratives to aid transition
- Co-investigator (Primary investigator: Dr Emily Nordmann)
- Student: Aletta Boerkoel
- 2015 Curriculum Development Studentship, University Aberdeen
- Putting the 'I' in employability: Development of interactive class materials to enhance provision of L3 Psychology employability workshops
- Lead Investigator
- Student: Oliver Hamlet
- The examination of Non-Technical Skills (teamwork, communication, situation awareness, cognitive readiness etc) and factors influencing non-technical skills (such as mission type, performance limitations, context etc) in industries including:
- Teaching
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Teaching Responsibilities
I teach on undergraduate, postgraduate and ondemand courses:
- Level 3: Psychological Assessment Tutorials
- Level 4: Thesis supervision
- MRes: Public engagement
- MRes: Thesis Supervision
- PhD Supervision
- Human Factors in Industrial Practice online course
- Safety Critical Skills in Industry online course
- Organisational Culture and Conflict online course
- Organisational Safety and Risk online course
- Publications
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Evaluation of the prototype anaesthetic non-technical skills for anaesthetic practitioners (ANTS-AP) system: a behavioural rating system to assess the non-technical skills used by staff assisting the anaesthetist
Anaesthesia, vol. 70, no. 8, pp. 907-914Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/anae.13127
The human factor in agriculture: an interview study to identify farmers' non-technical skills
Safety Science, vol. 74, pp. 114-121Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2014.12.008
The non-technical skills used by Anaesthetic Technicians in critical incidents reported to the Australian Incident Monitoring System between 2002 and 2008
Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 512-517Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe effect of proximity, Tall Man lettering and time pressure on accurate visual perception of drug names
Human Factors, vol. 55, no. 2, pp. 253-266Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAn exploratory evaluation of perceptual, psychoacoustic and acoustical properties of urban soundscapes
Applied Acoustics, vol. 74, no. 2, pp. 248-254Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apacoust.2011.03.006
The impact of patient aggression on community pharmacists: A critical incident study
International Journal of Pharmacy Practice, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 20-27Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2042-7174.2012.00222.x
Dealing with Aggressive Patients in Healthcare: A Review
Aggressive Behaviour: New Research. Bodine, R., Bucher, D. R. (eds.). Nova Science Publishers Inc, pp. 119-140, 22 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersDealing with aggressive methadone patients in community pharmacy: a critical incident study
Journal of Social and Administrative Pharmacy, vol. 8, no. 6, pp. 542-551Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sapharm.2012.01.001
Listening to emotion: auditory processing and the amygdala.
Amgdala: Structure, Function and Disorders. Nova Science Publishers IncChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersRetrospective analysis of DATIX dispensing error reports from Scottish hospitals
International Journal of Pharmacy Practice, vol. 19, no. 6, pp. 417 - 423Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2042-7174.2011.00136.x