Maureen Hassall

A formative approach to the strategies analysis phase of cognitive work analysis

Strategies Analysis, the third phase of Cognitive Work Analysis, helps investigators consider the range of ways in which workers can perform control tasks. Most existing approaches to Strategies Analysis identify a limited number of domain-specific strategies. We present a two-phase formative Strategies Analysis method intended to expose the range of strategies possible within a work system and the likelihood that different types of strategies will be selected in different contexts. The first phase, the preparatory phase, identifies generalised constraints that affect the range and selection of strategies, and the categories of strategies that may be applied to any domain. In the second phase, the application phase, investigators use the outputs of the preparatory phase to explore the impact that different work situations, tasks and workers have on the categories of strategies most likely to be adopted.

Why do residential recycled water schemes fail? A comprehensive review of risk factors and impact on objectives.

In Australia, recycled water schemes have been implemented in residential developments to contribute to sustainable urban development, improve water supply security and reduce pollutant discharges to the environment. A proportion of these schemes, however, have been decommissioned well before the end of their design life which raises questions about the adequacy of the risk assessment and management practices adopted for recycled water schemes. Through a detailed literature review, an investigation of 21 residential recycled water schemes and in-depth interviews with nine scheme stakeholders, we identified 34 risk factors arising from six sources which have the potential to impact the long-term viability of residential recycled water schemes. Of the 34 risk factors identified, 17 were reported to have occurred during the development and implementation of the 21 schemes investigated. The overall risk rating of the 17 factors was qualitatively defined on the basis of the likelihood of occurrence and the impact of the risk factors on the scheme objectives. The outcomes of the assessment indicate that the critical risks to the long-term viability of residential recycled water schemes are 1. unanticipated operational costs, 2. legal and contractual arrangements, 3. regulatory requirements and approval process and 4. customer complaints and expectations not met. To date, public health risks associated with the provision of recycled water have been of primary concern, though the outcomes of this study indicate that the impact to public health has been low. Evidently there is a need for improved assessment and management practices which address the range of critical risk factors, in addition to the routine consideration of public health risks.

The development and testing of SAfER: a resilience-based human factors method

Major industrial accidents still occur. Recent research suggests that to improve industrial safety we must design work systems that better support operators as they seek to control unexpected and unprecedented situations. A novel human factors technique called SAfER—Strategies Analysis for Enhancing Resilience—has been developed to help practitioners identify the range of strategies that human operators might use to manage expected, unexpected, and unprecedented situations. SAfER also helps practitioners identify design changes that should promote the selection of successful control strategies, as well as design changes that should prevent or tolerate the selection of any potential unsuccessful control strategies. Tests revealed that participants found SAfER to be a useful method capable of helping them identify novel insights and identify design changes that could help operators as they control systems across different operating situations. In future work, the usability of the SAfER method and software will be improved, and they will be tested in further industrial contexts.

Human Factors and Ergonomics

Human factors and ergonomics applies scientific information about human cognition and behavior to support the design of products and systems that enhance human well-being and performance. Human factors and ergonomics professionals investigate human–system interaction at the individual, group, and organizational levels. The aim is to design products that augment human physical, cognitive, and motivational capabilities and improve the social, technical, and organizational aspects of a system. Human factors and ergonomics has been used to improve safety and productivity particularly in complex sociotechnical systems.

Incident Analysis A Case Study Comparison of Traditional and SAfER Methods

To improve safety, work systems need to be designed that help humans successfully manage expected and unexpected situations. A resilience-based human factors method called strategies analysis for enhancing resilience (SAfER) has been developed to help practitioners identify ways to create systems that let humans more effectively control the range of different operating situations they may face. The SAfER method covers the identification of (a) critical system priorities that need to be preserved in order to sustain safe operations; (b) the range of decisions, actions, and strategies that humans might use to try to control different operating scenarios; and (c) design changes that help to promote actions that preserve safe operations and prevent or tolerate actions that might result in adverse outcomes. This paper describes the SAfER analysis conducted on an industrial crane-lift incident, and it compares the results from the SAfER analysis with those from a traditional incident investigation process. The findings from the comparison suggest that the SAfER method helps analysts identify and generate additional and potentially useful information on how the system design might be changed to improve crane-lift safety.

Using cognitive work analysis techniques to identify human factor hazards

Accidents in the process industries can be attributed, at least in part, to human causes. Hazard studies are commonly used in industry to identify and manage risks. This paper describes a methodology, called HumHID, which potentially improves hazard identification associated with human factors. The approach is based on cognitive work analysis (CWA) techniques, human factors/error taxonomies and the blended hazard methodology (BLHAZID). A desktop case study is used to illustrate the application of the methodology. The results show that a combination of CWA, human factors/error taxonomies and BLHAZID techniques provides a structured means of identifying hazards associated with human activity as well as showing the causality behind the hazards which can be used to guide redesign work.

Expert opinion on risks to the long-term viability of residential recycled water schemes: an Australian study

The water sector needs to make efficient and prudent investment decisions by carefully considering the long-term viability of water infrastructure projects. To support the assessment and planning of residential recycled water schemes in Australia, we have sought to clarify scheme objectives and to further define the array of critical risks that can impact the long-term viability of schemes. Building on historical information, we conducted a national survey which elicited responses from 88 Australian expert practitioners, of which 64% have over 10 years of industry experience and 42% have experience with more than five residential recycled water schemes. On the basis of expert opinion, residential recycled water schemes are considered to be highly relevant for diversifying and improving water supply security, reducing wastewater effluent discharge and pollutant load to waterways and contributing to sustainable urban development. At present however, the inability to demonstrate an incontestable business case is posing a significant risk to the long-term viability of residential recycled water schemes. Political, regulatory, organisational and financial factors were also rated as critical risks, in addition to community risk perception and fall in demand. The survey results shed further light on the regulatory environment of residential recycled water schemes, with regulatory participants rating the level and impact of risk factors higher than other survey participants in most cases. The research outcomes provide a comprehensive understanding of the critical risks to the long-term viability of residential recycled water schemes, thereby enabling the specification of targeted risk management measures at the assessment and planning stage of a scheme.

Using Naturalistic Decision Making to Identify Support Requirements in the Traffic Incident Management Work Environment

The road crash environment is a complex, dynamic, and dangerous workplace for responders at the scene. Decisions made by senior officers from responder agencies can alter the survival outcomes of road crash victims and the safety of responder crews. Although no previous studies have utilized naturalistic decision making principles to research traffic incident management, the characteristics of the workplace seem ideally suited to it. This study used critical decision method (CDM) interviews and the recognition-primed decision model to analyze decisions made by experienced senior responders at traffic incidents. CDM interviews were conducted with officers from three agencies: police, emergency services, and road authority traffic officers. The results revealed useful and novel information about the traffic incident management system, for example, interagency coordination issues. The process identified key decision points at incidents as well as countermeasures to the identified issues using decision-centered design. These countermeasures were subsequently validated by subject matter experts.

An organizational resilience-based human factors safety method: the development and testing of SAfER

Major accidents still occur in industry. Accidents often emerge from unexpected circumstances and the outcomes are often dependent on human decision making. At present there does not appear to be a human factors method that helps industry practitioners create designs that enhance successful human control in unexpected circumstances. In this article we propose a human factors method that may fulfil this need. The method has been designed (1) to help industry practitioners identify control strategies that operators might use to manage unexpected situations and (2) to offer design insights that could promote control strategies that lead to more resilient system outcomes. We have called the method Strategies Analysis for Enhancing Resilience (SAfER). Results from initial user trials with industry practitioners show that the SAfER method has promise, but that further work is needed to refine it.

End-users’ perspectives on safety risks in different high-hazard industries

Despite many improvements over the last century, serious injuries and work-related fatalities remain a significant global challenge in different high-hazard industries. Further reductions in incidents should happen with improved risk identification and control which relies on human perception and decision making. It is important to understand end-user perspectives in order to identify and design effective risk management artefacts. This paper discusses four studies of different high-hazard industry worker populations (agriculture, oil and gas, boardroom and industrial contracting) that were conducted to understand risk management practices and opportunities in different environments. The work demonstrates that it is possible to identify novel insights directly from end-users that can assist in prioritizing and clarifying further risk improvement opportunities and research needs.