Matthew Bolton

Matthew Bolton is an Associate Professor in the Department of Systems and Information Engineering at the University of Virginia. His research focuses on human-centered systems engineering, particularly addressing how human behavior and cognition contribute to system failures. He has held prior roles as a Senior Researcher at NASA Ames Research Center and faculty positions at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University at Buffalo. Bolton specializes in formal methods to enhance system safety in domains like aerospace, healthcare, and cybersecurity.

Dr. Bolton holds B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in Computer Science and Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia (2003, 2006, 2010). His work has been funded by organizations including the European Space Agency, NSF, NASA, AHRQ, and the Department of Defense.

His research interests span system safety, human performance modeling, formal methods, cybersecurity, and engineering ethics. Notable contributions include developing the SAFPH formal human reliability analysis framework and advancing medical alarm audibility standards.

Recent publications emphasize trust in AI systems, tactile navigation for the visually impaired, and human-agent teaming dynamics. His work has earned prestigious awards, including the Jerome H. Ely Human Factors Article Award (2021) and the William C. Howell Young Investigator Award (2018).

Bolton’s research integrates formal verification techniques with human factors engineering to prevent errors in safety-critical systems. He leads the Formal Human Systems Laboratory, exploring inclusive design principles and ethical engineering practices.