About

Before joining the University of Derby (School of Psychology) in 2016, I was a Visiting Post-doctoral Scholar within the Safe Transportation Research and Education Center at the University of California at Berkeley, conducting independent research into 1) the ageing passenger population; 2) human factors considerations with self-driving cars. As the applied psychologist, I was also part of a multidisciplinary team of researchers involved in projects assessing traffic safety culture (funded by the California Office of Traffic Safety); bicycle level of service; and yielding behaviours at intersections (funded by the California Department of Transportation). My role within the team involved the design of research projects and the development of survey materials, mentoring student researchers, analysing data, and writing academic reports.

Prior to this, I was the recipient of an internationally competitive Endeavour Research Fellowship funded by the Australian Government, enabling me to conduct independent research at the University of New South Wales, Australia. There I focused on the use of escalators among older rail passengers, and gained an international perspective on the Human Factors research that I am so passionate about. I completed my BSc Psychology with Ergonomics, MSc Health Psychology, PhD and postdoctoral research at Loughborough University, looking into crowd behaviour, rail safety (funded by the Rail Safety and Standards Board), teenagers trespassing (funded by Network Rail), and the ageing population.

As a registered member of the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors I have worked for a number of ergonomics design consultancies within the medical device usability sector, gaining practical experience and utilising both analytical and empirical approaches.

Research interests

My research interests broadly focus on human factors and ergonomics, as well as social and environmental psychology. Within various sectors including: healthcare, transport, and nuclear. 

I have a passion for researching the ageing population, use of public transport, and escalator use. I am also very fascinated by crowd behaviour, and the safety and satisfaction of participants within a crowd. This is with respect to the use of transport hubs, passenger flow, and passenger experience.

More recently I have developed an interest in the human factors considerations within surgery, and the equipment used by healthcare workers. I am also very interested in medical device usability and have been involved in a number of consultancy projects in line with this.

Recent publications

• Filingeri, D., Valenza, A., Ficarra, S., Filingeri, V., Worsley, P.R., & Bianco, A (2024), case report on the physiological responses to extreme heat during Sicily's July 2023 heatwave, Physiological Reports, 12 (11), e16107
• Shawcross, P., Lyons, M., & Filingeri, V. (2021), The relationship between readiness to change pain-related exercise participation and perceived work ability: a cross-sectional study of factory workers, BMC musculoskeletal disorders, 22, 1-10(7)
• Filingeri, D., Cowley, H., Merrick, C., Gang, P.S., & Filingeri, V.L. (2020). The effects of clothing layers on the thermoregulatory responses to short duration babywearing in babies under 12 months old, Physiological reports 8 (9), e14425
• Griswold, J.B., Yu, M., Filingeri, V., Grembek, O., & Walker, J.L. (2018), A behavioral modeling approach to bicycle level of service, Transportation research part A: policy and practice, 116, 166-177(63)
• Filingeri, V.L., Eason, K., Waterson P., & Haslam, R. (2018), Factors influencing experience in crowds–the organiser perspective, Applied Ergonomics 68, 18-27(12)
• Filingeri, V.L., Waterson, P.E., Eason, K. & Haslam, R.A. 2016. Factors influencing experience in crowds – the participant perspective. Applied Ergonomics, in press
• Underwood, P., Kendrick, V.L. & Waterson, P. 2016. Teenage Trespass on the Railways - A Systems Approach. Transport, in press
• Waterson, P., Kendrick, V.L., Ryan, B., Jun, T., & Haslam, R. 2016. Probing Deeper into the Risks of Slips, Trips and Falls for an Ageing Rail Passenger Population: Applying a Systems Approach. IET Intelligent Transport Systems, 10(1), 25-31
• Kendrick, V.L. 2015. Introduction to Crowd Science, Ergonomics, 26, 1-2
• Kendrick, V.L., Haslam, R.A., & Waterson, P.E. 2012. Planning crowd events to achieve high participant satisfaction. Work: A Journal of Prevention, Assessment and Rehabilitation, 41(1), 3223-3226

Membership of professional bodies

• Registered member of the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors

Qualifications

• Visiting Scholar - University of California at Berkeley, USA
• Endeavour Research Fellowship - University of New South Wales, Australia
• PhD Human Factors - Loughborough University, UK
• MSc Psychology of Work and Health (distinction) - Loughborough University
• BSc (Hons) Psychology with Ergonomics - Loughborough University

Recent conferences

Experience in industry

• Freelance Ergonomist and Human Factors Specialist (including: medical device usability; expert witness)

International experience

• Visiting Scholar - University of California at Berkeley, USA
• Endeavour Research Fellowship - University of New South Wales, Australia

Teaching responsibilities

Module lead:

• Fundamentals in Ergonomics and Human Factors
• Contemptory Issues in Ergonomics and Human Factors
• Ergonomics and Human Factors in Healthcare
• Research Project in Ergonomics and Human Factors

Additional interests and activities

When I’m not teaching or researching all things Ergonomics and Human Factors, I like to holiday in Sicily, relax and enjoy time with my young family.