Since authorization of the Ph.D. degree, staffing in Human Factors has increased significantly and the research capabilities of the laboratory have expanded to include a number of major areas of human factors research. Please feel free to contact any of our professors if you have questions regarding our program or the research they are currently investigating.
Older adults are a rapidly growing segment of all industrialized populations.
Age-related changes in physiological and psychological capacities alter the design equations which dictate system optimization. Research in the Heimstra Human Factors Laboratory is examining these changes and exploring the application of technology toward the advancement of the mobility, safety and productivity of older persons. Recent research efforts have focused upon highway engineering interventions designed to meet the emerging needs of older drivers. Human Factors faculty and students have been involved in a broad range of studies involving application of cognitive theory and methods to human factors research. Recent research focus include cognitive issues in visual display design, complex monitoring tasks, numerical data entry, interview and survey administration, consumer product labeling, mental workload exerted while driving, and geographical knowledge representation and retrieval.