
Overview
Background
I'm a senior research fellow in business and organisational psychology. I manage a large program of research and consulting focused on applying advanced analytic methods like statistical, computational, and mathematical models to improve the health, safety, and performance of people at work. My research aims to understanding the dynamics of decision-making, motivation, fatigue, and stress and how these processes affect our performance and mental health. Building on this research, I offer services as an advanced HR and people anlytics consultant where I help organisations leverage their data to generate actionable strategies that enhance decision-making, optimise workforce productivity, and promote employee well-being.
My work has been published in premier journals such as Psychological Review, Journal of Applied Psychology, The Leadership Quarterly, Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, Organizational Research Methods, Journal of Neuroscience, and Global Environmental Change. My research has attracted more than $3 million in external funding has been recognised by ARC DECRA and Future Fellowships and Early Career Researcher Awards from the Australian Psychological Society, the Australasian Mathematical Psychology Society, and the Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences at UQ. You can read more about my research here and my consulting services here. I also occasionally write blog posts about my projects or about analytics more generally, which you can find here. Want to explore how advanced analytics could help your organisation? Get in touch.
Availability
- Dr Timothy Ballard is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Qualifications
- Bachelor (Honours) of Psychological Science, The University of Queensland
- Doctor of Philosophy, University of Western Australia
Works
Search Professor Timothy Ballard’s works on UQ eSpace
2025
Journal Article
The influence of tDCS on the speed-accuracy tradeoff and metacognitive decision making
Sabio, Joshua, Ballard, Timothy, Filmer, Hannah L. and Dux, Paul E. (2025). The influence of tDCS on the speed-accuracy tradeoff and metacognitive decision making. Neuropsychologia, 211 109130, 109130-211. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2025.109130
2025
Journal Article
Revisiting Keynes’ predictions about work and leisure: A discussion of fundamental questions about the nature of modern work
Kaplan, Seth A., Aitken, John A., Allan, Blake A., Alliger, George M., Ballard, Timothy and Zacher, Hannes (2025). Revisiting Keynes’ predictions about work and leisure: A discussion of fundamental questions about the nature of modern work. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 18 (1), 1-22. doi: 10.1017/iop.2024.58
2024
Journal Article
The dynamics of competition and decision-making
Morgan, Andrew J., Neal, Andrew and Ballard, Timothy (2024). The dynamics of competition and decision-making. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 31 (6), 2811-2822. doi: 10.3758/s13423-024-02523-2
2024
Journal Article
The impact of cognitive resource constraints on goal prioritization
Alister, Manikya, Herbert, Scott L., Sewell, David K., Neal, Andrew and Ballard, Timothy (2024). The impact of cognitive resource constraints on goal prioritization. Cognitive Psychology, 148 101618. doi: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2023.101618
2024
Book Chapter
How to publish and review a computational model
Neal, Andrew, Ballard, Timothy and Palada, Hector (2024). How to publish and review a computational model. Computational Modeling For IndustrialOrganizational Psychologists. (pp. 297-319) New York, NY United States: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781003388852-13
2024
Journal Article
Using mixture modeling to examine differences in perceptual decision-making as a function of the time and method of participant recruitment
Ballard, Timothy, Evans, Nathan J., Fisher, Gina and Sewell, David K. (2024). Using mixture modeling to examine differences in perceptual decision-making as a function of the time and method of participant recruitment. Behavior Research Methods, 56 (3), 2194-2212. doi: 10.3758/s13428-023-02142-0
2024
Book Chapter
Fitting computational models to data: a tutorial
Ballard, Timothy, Palada, Hector and Neal, Andrew (2024). Fitting computational models to data: a tutorial. Computational modeling for industrial-organizational psychologists. (pp. 255-296) edited by Jeffrey B. Vancouver, Mo Wang and Justin M. Weinhardt. New York, NY, United States: Taylor and Francis. doi: 10.4324/9781003388852-12
2024
Journal Article
The next generation of fatigue prediction models: evaluating current trends in biomathematical modelling
Wilson, Michael David, Strickland, Luke, Ballard, Timothy and Griffin, Mark A. (2024). The next generation of fatigue prediction models: evaluating current trends in biomathematical modelling. Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science, 25 (1), 21-43. doi: 10.1080/1463922x.2022.2144962
2023
Journal Article
Individual differences in decision strategy relate to neurochemical excitability and cortical thickness
Filmer, Hannah L., Loughnan, Kathleen, Seeto, Jennifer X., Ballard, Timothy, Ehrhardt, Shane E., Shaw, Thomas, Wards, Yohan, Rideaux, Reuben, Leow, Li-Ann, Sewell, David and Dux, Paul E. (2023). Individual differences in decision strategy relate to neurochemical excitability and cortical thickness. The Journal of Neuroscience, 43 (42), 7006-7015. doi: 10.1523/jneurosci.1086-23.2023
2023
Journal Article
Dopamine alters the effect of brain stimulation on decision-making
Leow, Li-Ann, Marcos, Anjeli, Nielsen, Esteban, Sewell, David K, Ballard, Tim, Dux, Paul E. and Filmer, Hannah L. (2023). Dopamine alters the effect of brain stimulation on decision-making. The Journal of Neuroscience, 43 (41), 6909-6919. doi: 10.1523/jneurosci.1140-23.2023
2023
Conference Publication
A methodology for evaluating the safety and effectiveness of alternative crewing arrangements for next-generation Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems
Neal, Andrew, Marshall, Kayler, Sanderson, Penelope, Ballard, Timothy, Palada, Hector, Boag-Hodgson, Christine, Duffy, Donna and Perez, Tristan (2023). A methodology for evaluating the safety and effectiveness of alternative crewing arrangements for next-generation Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems. IEEE/AIAA 42nd Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC), Barcelona, Spain, 1-5 October 2023. New York, NY, United States: IEEE. doi: 10.1109/dasc58513.2023.10311253
2023
Journal Article
Interruptions in healthcare: modeling dynamic processes and effects at a team level
Knight, Emma, Sanderson, Penelope, Neal, Andrew and Ballard, Timothy (2023). Interruptions in healthcare: modeling dynamic processes and effects at a team level. Applied Ergonomics, 112 104051, 1-11. doi: 10.1016/j.apergo.2023.104051
2023
Journal Article
Evaluation of gender disparity in tactical combat casualty care
Vaughan, Shanna R., Ballard, Timothy, Ward-Demo, Pamela, Vojta, Leslie, Ahmed, Anwar E. and Costello, Amy (2023). Evaluation of gender disparity in tactical combat casualty care. Military Medicine, 189 (9-10), 2114-2119. doi: 10.1093/milmed/usad455
2023
Journal Article
A tutorial on Bayesian modeling of change across time, individuals, and groups
Knight, Emma, Neal, Andrew, Palada, Hector and Ballard, Timothy (2023). A tutorial on Bayesian modeling of change across time, individuals, and groups. Computational Brain and Behavior, 6 (4), 697-718. doi: 10.1007/s42113-023-00173-6
2023
Journal Article
Sustainable tactical combat casualty care implementation in Ghana: a model for future development
Polley, Catherine C., Adu-Gyamfi, Rossi, Mahama-Toure, Tawfik, Okpoti Konney, Fattal, Oti-Boateng, Emmanuel, Nsohlebna Nsoh, Lawrence and Ballard, Timothy (2023). Sustainable tactical combat casualty care implementation in Ghana: a model for future development. Military Medicine, 189 (5-6), e1221-e1225. doi: 10.1093/milmed/usad333
2023
Journal Article
A systematic investigation into the reliability of inter-temporal choice model parameters
Ballard, Timothy, Luckman, Ashley and Konstantinidis, Emmanouil (2023). A systematic investigation into the reliability of inter-temporal choice model parameters. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 30 (4), 1294-1322. doi: 10.3758/s13423-022-02241-7
2023
Journal Article
The causal role of the prefrontal and superior medial frontal cortices in the incidental manipulation of decision strategies
Filmer, Hannah L., Ballard, Timothy, Amarasekera, Koralalage Don Raveen, Sewell, David K. and Dux, Paul E. (2023). The causal role of the prefrontal and superior medial frontal cortices in the incidental manipulation of decision strategies. Neuropsychologia, 179 108466, 1-7. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108466
2023
Journal Article
Using cognitive modeling to examine the effects of competition on strategy and effort in races and tournaments
Morgan, Andrew J., Neal, Andrew and Ballard, Timothy (2023). Using cognitive modeling to examine the effects of competition on strategy and effort in races and tournaments. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 30 (3), 1158-1169. doi: 10.3758/s13423-022-02213-x
2022
Other Outputs
Role of Prefrontal cortex (PFC) and Superior medial frontal cortex (SMFC) in implicit response strategies.
Filmer, Hannah and Ballard, Timothy (2022). Role of Prefrontal cortex (PFC) and Superior medial frontal cortex (SMFC) in implicit response strategies.. The University of Queensland. (Dataset) doi: 10.48610/0e92ea8
2022
Journal Article
tDCS augments decision-making efficiency in an intensity dependent manner: a training study
Ehrhardt, Shane E., Ballard, Timothy, Wards, Yohan, Mattingley, Jason B., Dux, Paul E. and Filmer, Hannah L. (2022). tDCS augments decision-making efficiency in an intensity dependent manner: a training study. Neuropsychologia, 176 108397, 108397. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108397
Funding
Current funding
Supervision
Availability
- Dr Timothy Ballard is:
- Available for supervision
Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.
Available projects
Supervision history
Current supervision
-
Doctor Philosophy
A data-driven approach to reorganising the workweek: examining the relationship between work hours and mental health over time
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Exploring the effect of stimulus variability and noise on confidence judgments
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Hannah Filmer, Professor Paul Dux
-
Doctor Philosophy
Enhancing Human-Automation Collaboration in Production Systems: Evaluating Cognitive & Physical Impacts for Future Work Design
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Andrew Neal
-
Doctor Philosophy
Validating a computational model for designing work roles for crew operating unmanned aircraft.
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Penelope Sanderson, Professor Andrew Neal
-
Doctor Philosophy
The Dynamics of Conflicting Processing: A Model-based Approach to Simon and Flanker Tasks
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr David Sewell
-
Doctor Philosophy
Enhancing Human-Automation Collaboration in Production Systems: Evaluating Cognitive & Physical Impacts for Future Work Design
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Andrew Neal
-
Doctor Philosophy
Considering the Design of Work for Remotely Piloted Aircraft Crew
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Penelope Sanderson, Professor Andrew Neal
-
Doctor Philosophy
Considering the Design of Work for Remotely Piloted Aircraft Crew
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Penelope Sanderson, Professor Andrew Neal
-
Doctor Philosophy
Prioritising goals in dynamic and contested environments: multi-tasking and the MGPM* under conditions of friction
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Andrew Neal
-
Doctor Philosophy
The Influence of Brain Stimulation on Metacognition
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Hannah Filmer, Professor Paul Dux
-
Doctor Philosophy
Multiple Decision Makers in the Pursuit of Multiple Goals
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Andrew Neal
Completed supervision
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
Interruptions in Healthcare: Developing and Testing a Computational Model of Interruption Processes and Effects at a Team Level
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Penelope Sanderson
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
The Dynamics of Decision Making During Competitive Goal Pursuit
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Andrew Neal
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
The Dynamics of Conflicting Processing: A Model-based Approach to Simon and Flanker Tasks
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr David Sewell
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
Multiple Decision Makers in the Pursuit of Multiple Goals
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Andrew Neal
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
Self-cognitive Advantages and their Underlying Decisional and Attentional Mechanisms
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr David Sewell, Associate Professor Ada Kritikos
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Combining brain stimulation and training to enhance cognition
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Jason Mattingley, Dr Hannah Filmer, Professor Paul Dux
Media
Enquiries
Contact Dr Timothy Ballard directly for media enquiries about:
- Climate change communication
- Goal prioritisation
- Multitasking
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