Amie Hayley

Associate Professor Amie Hayley is a Senior Research Fellow at Swinburne University of Technology's School of Health Sciences and an NHMRC and Rebecca L. Cooper Al & Val Rosenstrauss Fellow at the Centre for Mental Health and Brain Sciences. She was named a 2024 Australasian College of Road Safety (ACRS) Road Safety Future Leader for her groundbreaking work on drug-impaired driving. As the Founding Chair of the Driver Monitoring System working group and Treasurer for the International Council for Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety (ICADTS) Executive Board, she plays a significant international leadership role in road safety research.

Dr. Hayley earned her Doctor of Philosophy (Medicine) from Deakin University, following a Bachelor of Psychological Studies (Honours) and a standard Bachelor of Psychological Studies, both from Victoria University. Her educational background provided the foundation for her current research program focused on the intersection of neuroscience, pharmacology, and road safety.

Her research program investigates biochemical-physiological-behavioral pathways relevant to oculomotor function, visual-attentional performance, and information processing capabilities under drug conditions. With research funding exceeding AUD $6.4 million in the past 5 years, she leads multiple projects examining the effects of substances like cannabis, methamphetamine, and alcohol on driving performance. Her work uniquely combines laboratory-based psychopharmacology with real-world road safety applications, particularly through the development and validation of eye-tracking technologies for impairment detection.

Analysis of her recent publications (2024-2025) reveals a strong focus on translational research bridging laboratory findings with practical road safety applications. Her work spans from basic pharmacological studies on drug interactions to population-level surveys on public attitudes toward drug-impaired driving. A notable trend is her increasing focus on medicinal cannabis and its implications for driving safety, reflecting emerging policy challenges in jurisdictions where cannabis is being legalized for medical use.

• Australasian College of Road Safety (ACRS) Future Leader in Road Safety (2024)
• Director, Communications and Media Award (2024)
• Vice-Chancellor's Research Excellence Award (Early Career) (2020)
• Australian Research Council's Engagement and Impact Assessment (2019)
• Young Scientist Award from International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety (2019)
• Deans Award for Emerging Researcher (2016)

Associate Professor Hayley actively supervises PhD students on projects related to alcohol hangovers, medicinal cannabis and driving, and sleep pharmacology. Her research program involves collaborations with government agencies including the Department of Transport and Planning (Victoria), Department of Treasury (ACT), and multiple industry partners, particularly Seeing Machines Limited with whom she has conducted several eye-tracking studies. Her work directly informs road safety policy through her leadership roles in ICADTS and engagement with policymakers on drug-impaired driving legislation.

While not formally named in the materials, her research group functions as a multidisciplinary team bringing together expertise in neuroscience, pharmacology, psychology, and engineering to address the complex challenge of drug-impaired driving. The team utilizes advanced technologies including automotive-grade driver monitoring systems, eye-tracking equipment, and clinical research methodologies to produce evidence that directly informs road safety policy and practice.