Associate Professor Bernd Rohrmann

MSc, Dr phil, Dr phil habil.

Associate Professor

Contact details:

Study of Psychology (with additions in sociological methodology and linguistics) in Marburg, Hamburg and Mannheim (Germany). 1965 "Diplom" <i.e. Masters>, 1974 PhD (Faculty of Social Science), 1983 "Habilitation", 1989 Adjunct professorship at the University of Mannheim. Until 1991 lecturer and director of a social-scientific consultancy team (Epsilon) in Germany. Also visiting lecturer or researcher in Austria, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. Since 1993 with the University of Melbourne. Conducted numerous empirical research projects; strong emphasis on interdisciplinary approaches and applicability of findings. Also work as consultant with governmental agencies, courts and companies; participation in expert hearings.

Research Interests:

Social and Organisational Psychology:

• Environmental psychology
  • risk perception/communication/management;
  • assessment of virtual environments
  • disaster preparedness (especially regarding fires)
  • impact of environmental factors (e.g., soundscapes and noise)
  • residential choice and satisfaction
  • energy-saving housing
• Applied social psychology
  • decision processes and decision-aiding technologies
  • risk attitudes
  • linguistic structure of texts
  • teaching quality
• Research methodology
  • Response scales
  • Survey methodology
  • Evaluation research
  • Conceptual frameworks.
• Specialist Environmental Psychology Lab

As extension of the research program, a bi-annual "Multidisciplinary Melbourne Risk Research Roundtable" (2M3R) was established in 1999, conducted in the Psychology Dept.

For further details, check www.rohrmannresearch.net.

Professional Associations, Memberships & Awards:

• International Commission on Biological Effects of Noise (ICBEN), Team 6 Community noise impacts
• International Association for Applied Psychology (IAAP)
• International Association for People-environment Studies (IAPS)
• Society for Risk Analysis (SRA-Europe)
• Psychology Society of Germany (DtGPS)
• The International Society for Emergency Management (TIEMS)

Since 1989, an Adjunct Professorship ("Apl. Professor") is maintained at the University of Mannheim in Germany.

Furthermore, guest professorships at the University of Fribourg and the University of Zuerich in Switzerland are annually realized since 1988.

Recent Funded Research:

For each of these projects, a description of the research plan and selected reports can be found at www.rohrmannresearch.net.

Rohrmann, B. (2007). Exploring information for residents on websites of fire authorities - practical experiences. The Australian Journal of Emergency Management, 22, 10-15.

Rohrmann, B. (2007). Soundscapes - types and impacts of music imparted in public places. To appear in the handbook for the conference 19th Congress of the International Association for People-Environment Studies (IAPS), September 2006 in Alexandria/Egypt .Rohrmann, B. (2007). Exploring forest-fire events on websites - viewpoints of people of diverse cultural backgrounds. The International Emergency Management Society TIEMS (Ed.), 14th Annual Confererence book of proceedings, pp 403-410.

Rohrmann, B. (2004). Technological Versus Socio-Psychological Risk Management. In Emergency Management Australia (EMA) (Ed)., Safer sustainable communities (Proceedings of the 2003 Australian Disaster Conference), Canberra: EMA. Rohrmann, B. (2003). Bushfire Preparedness of Residents: Insights from Socio-Psychological Research. In G. Cary & D. Lindenmayer & S. Dovers (Eds.), Australia burning: Fire ecology, policy and management issues (113-118). Melbourne: CSIRO Publishing. Rohrmann, B. (2003). The Role of Risk Communication in Processes of Disaster Preparedness. In J. Gough (Ed.), Sharing the future—Risk communication in practice. Christchurch: CAE, University of Canterbury. Rohrmann, B. (2003). Soundscapes in Restaurants. In: World Forum Acoustic Ecology (Eds.), Proceedings of the International Symposium of Acoustic Ecology, Melbourne. Rohrmann, B., & Bishop, I. (2002). Subjective Responses to Computer Simulations of Urban Environments. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 22, 319-331. Renn, O., & Rohrmann, B. (Eds.). (2000). Cross-Cultural Risk Perception Research . Dordrecht: Kluwer. Rohrmann, B. (2000). A socio-psychological model for analyzing risk communication processes. Australasian Journal For Disaster Studies.Rohrmann, B. (1998). The Risk Notion: Epistemological and Empirical Considerations. In M. G. Steward & R. E. Melchers (Eds.), Integrated risk assessment: Applications and regulations (39-46). Rotterdam: Balkama.

Rohrmann, B. (1998). The Use of Verbal Scale Point Labels. In C. Norman & S.R.F. Job (Eds.), 7th International Congress on Noise as a Public Health Problem (Vol. 2, 523-527). Sydney: N. E. Pty Ltd.

Rohrmann, B. (1994). Risk Perception of Different Societal Groups: Australian Findings and Cross-National Comparisons. Australian Journal of Psychology, 46, 150-163.

Rohrmann, B. (1992). The Evaluation of Risk Communication Effectiveness. Acta Psychologica, 81, 169-192.

PhD Student under Supervision:

Sonja Pedell