Webley received his BSc and PhD from the London School of Economics. After a brief period at the University of Southampton he moved to the University of Exeter, where he remained for 26 years, rising from lecturer to professor of economic psychology. He was head of the Department and School of Psychology from 1993 to 2003, and from 2003 to 2006 he was one of the university's deputy vice-chancellors (Senior Deputy VC, 2005-6). His major research interests were economic socialization, the psychology of money, and the psychology of taxation, though he also worked on environmental psychology and the general issue of the social psychology underlying rule compliance.
Webley wrote 10 books, 58 chapters in books, 68 journal articles, and more than a dozen papers for newsletters, magazines, and miscellaneous professional and academic publications. A full list is available here:
Notable publications, illustrating the range of Webley's research, include:
Lea, S.E.G., Tarpy, R.M., & Webley, P. (1987). The Individual in the Economy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Webley, P., Robben, H.S.J., Elffers, H., & Hessing, D.J. (1991). Tax evasion: an experimental approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Bonn, M.; Webley, Paul (2000). "South African children's understanding of money and banking". British Journal of Developmental Psychology. 18 (2): 269–278. doi:10.1348/026151000165689.
Webley, P.; Siviter, C (2000). "Why do some owners allow their dogs to foul the pavement? The social psychology of a minor rule infraction". Journal of Applied Social Psychology. 30 (7): 1371–1380. doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2000.tb02525.x.
Webley, P., Burgoyne, C.B., Lea, S.E.G. & Young, B.M. (2001). The Economic Psychology of Everyday Life. Hove: Psychology Press.