Dalla Lana School of Public Health

Faculty Member

Christine M. Wickens

Research Interests

Social and behavioural determinants of motor vehicle collision risk

Alcohol and drug-impaired driving

Driver anger and aggression

Mental health and driver behaviour

Student stress and well-being

Traumatic brain injury

Education & Training History

HBSc – University of Toronto – Psychology/Sociology – 2000

MA – York University – Social and Personality Psychology – 2003

PhD – York University – Social and Personality Psychology – 2009

Post-Doctoral Training – Centre for Addiction and Mental Health – Social and Epidemiological Research; Public Health – 2012

Current Research Projects

Acute and residual effects of alcohol and cannabis on young drivers’ performance of driving-related skills

Outcome evaluation of remedial measures program for convicted impaired drivers

Impact of mental health issues on driver behaviour using population survey data

Mild traumatic brain injury in the workplace

Representative Publications

Driver Stress, Anger, and Aggression

Wickens, C. M., & Wiesenthal, D. L. (2005). State driver stress as a function of occupational stress, traffic congestion, and trait stress susceptibility. Journal of Applied Biobehavioral Research, 10, 83-97.

Wickens, C. M., Toplak, M. E., & Wiesenthal, D. L. (2008). Cognitive failures as predictors of driving errors, lapses, and violations. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 40, 1223-1233.

Wickens, C. M., Wiesenthal, D. L., Flora, D. B., & Flett, G. L. (2011). Understanding driver anger and aggression: Attributional theory in the driving environment. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 17(4), 354-370.

Wickens, C. M., Mann, R. E., Stoduto, G., Butters, J. E., Ialomiteanu, A., & Smart, R. G. (2012). Does gender moderate the relationship between driver aggression and its risk factors? Accident Analysis and Prevention, 45, 10-18.

Wickens, C. M., Mann, R. E., & Wiesenthal, D. L. (2013). Addressing driver aggression: Contributions from psychological science. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22(5), 386-391.

Wickens, C. M., Mann, R. E., Roseborough, J. E. W., Wiesenthal, D. L., & Smart, R. G. (2014). The straight ‘A’s of road rage: Attribution, anger, and aggressive behaviour. In M. G. Penrod & S. N. Paulk (Eds.), Psychology of anger: New research (pp. 49-69). New York: NOVA Science Publishers.

Alcohol- and Drug-Impaired Driving

Mann, R. E., Stoduto, G., Ialomiteanu, A., Asbridge, M. Smart, R. G., & Wickens, C. M. (2010). Self-reported collision risk associated with cannabis use and driving after cannabis use among Ontario adults. Traffic Injury Prevention, 11, 115-122.

Wickens, C. M., Mann, R. E., Stoduto, G., Flam Zalcman, R., & Butters, J. (2013). Alcohol control measures in traffic. In P. Boyle, P. Boffetta, W. Zatonski, A. Lowenfels, O. Brawley, H. Burns, & J. Rehm (Eds.), Alcohol: Science, policy and public health (pp. 378-388). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.

Wickens, C. M., Mann, R. E., Brands, B., Ialomiteanu, A., Fischer, B., Watson, T. M., Matheson, J., Stoduto, G., & Rehm, J. (2018). Driving under the influence of opioids: Self-reported prevalence and association with collision risk in a large Canadian jurisdiction. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 121, 14-19.

Wickens, C. M., Watson, T. M., Mann, R. E., & Brands, B. (2019). Exploring perceptions among people who drive after cannabis use: Collision risk, comparative optimism, and normative influence. Drug and Alcohol Review, 38, 443-451.

Outcome Evaluations of Remedial Programming for Impaired Drivers

Wickens, C. M., Flam-Zalcman, R., Mann, R. E., Stoduto, G., Nochajski, T., Koski-Jännes, A., Herie, M., Watkin-Merek, L., Rush, B., Thomas, R. K., LaFontaine, S., Watson, T. M., Matheson, J., Ilie, G., Mehra, K., Le, T. L., & Rehm, J. (2018). Evaluating moderators of beneficial effects of severity-based assignment to substance use treatments in impaired drivers. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 93, 49-56.

Wickens, C. M., Flam-Zalcman, R., Stoduto, G., Docherty, C., Watson, T. M., van der Maas, M., Brands, B., Ilie, G., Matheson, J., Mann, R. E., & Thomas, R. K. (2018). The impact of remedial program participation on convicted drinking drivers’ alcohol and other drug use six months following program completion. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 16, 598–616.

Wickens, C. M., Flam-Zalcman, R., Stoduto, G., Docherty, C., Thomas, R. K., Watson, T. M., Matheson, J., Mehra, K., & Mann, R. E. (2018). Multiple “low BAC” offenders: Characteristics and response to remedial interventions. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 115, 110-117.

Street Racing

Wickens, C. M., Smart, R. G., Vingilis, E., Ialomiteanu, A., Stoduto, G., & Mann, R. E. (2017). Street racing among the Ontario adult population: Prevalence and impact on collision risk. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 103, 85-91.

Mental Health Issues and Roadway Safety

Wickens, C. M., Mann, R. E., Stoduto, G., Ialomiteanu, A., Smart, R. G., & Rehm, J. (2013). The impact of probable anxiety and mood disorder on self-reported collisions: A population study. Journal of Affective Disorders, 145, 253-255.

Wickens, C. M., Smart, R. G., & Mann, R. E. (2014). The impact of depression on driver performance. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 12, 524-537.

Wickens, C. M., Mann, R. E., Ialomiteanu, A. R., Vingilis, E., Seeley, J., Erickson, P., & Kolla, N. J. (2019). The association of childhood symptoms of conduct disorder and collision risk in adulthood. Journal of Transport & Health, 13, 33-40.

Student Stress and Well-Being During a University Work Stoppage

Wickens, C. M., Fiksenbaum, L. M., Greenglass, E. R., & Wiesenthal, D. L. (2006). Student stress and coping following a university strike in Canada. Journal of Collective Negotiations, 31, 1-19.

Wickens, C. M. (2008). The organizational impact of university labor unions. Higher Education, 56, 545-564.

Wickens, C. M., Labrish, C., Masoumi, A., Fiksenbaum, L. M., & Greenglass, E. R. (2019). Effects of and remediation strategies for students affected by a university work stoppage: Comparing two institutions of higher learning. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 17, 425-444.