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Tag Archives: systems thinking
The Organisational Homelessness of ‘Human Factors’
Most fields of professional activity have a settled home within the divisional and departmental structures of organisations. Operational staff work in operational divisions. Engineering staff work in engineering divisions. Everyone else tends to know their place: finance, human resources, legal, … Continue reading
Four Kinds of Human Factors: 4. Socio-Technical System Interaction
This is the fourth in a series of posts on different ‘kinds’ of human factors, as understood both within and outside the discipline and profession of human factors and ergonomics itself. The first post explored human factors as ‘the human … Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, systems thinking
Tagged ergonomics, human factors, safety, systems thinking
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The Varieties of Human Work
The analysis of work cannot be limited to work as prescribed in procedures etc (le travail prescrit), nor to the observation of work actually done (le travail réalisé). Similarly, it cannot be limited to work as we imagine it, nor work as people talk about it. Only by considering all four of these varieties of human work can we hope to understand what’s going on. Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, systems thinking
Tagged aviation, ergonomics, field experts, focus groups, healthcare, human factors, interviews, observation, oil and gas, policy, procedures, QF32, rail, safety, safety-I, safety-II, systems thinking, task analysis, WebOps, work to rule, work-as-disclosed, work-as-done, work-as-imagined, work-as-judged
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Human Factors at The Fringe: My Eyes Went Dark
Written and directed by Matthew Wilkinson. A thrilling modern tragedy about a Russian architect driven to revenge after losing his family in a plane crash. Cal MacAninch and Thusitha Jayasundera give electrifying performances in this searing new play about the … Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, systems thinking
Tagged accidents, art, blame, human error, human factors, just culture, management, safety, systems thinking, theatre
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Never/zero thinking
There has been much talk in recent years about ‘never events’ and ‘zero harm’, similar to talk in the safety community about ‘zero accidents’. It sounds obvious: no one would want an accident. And we all wish that serious harm would not result from accidents. But as expressed and implemented top-down, never/zero is problematic for many reasons. In this post, I shall outline just a few, as I see them. Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, systems thinking
Tagged accidents, blame, human error, human factors, just culture, management, never events, safety, safety-I, safety-II, systems thinking, targets, zero harm
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‘Human error’ in the headlines: Press reporting on Virgin Galactic
Again, a familiar smoke pattern has emerged from the ashes of a high-profile accident. The National Transportation Safety Board held a hearing in Washington D.C. on 28 July 2015 on the Virgin Galactic crash over California on October 31, 2014. … Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, systems thinking
Tagged accidents, blame, ergonomics, human error, human factors, Language, safety-I, safety-II, social media, systems thinking
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Systems Thinking for Safety: From A&E to ATC
This article summarises a EUROCONTROL Network Manager White Paper called Systems Thinking for Safety: Ten Principles. The White Paper was a collaboration of EUROCONTROL, DFS, nine other air navigation service providers and three pilot and controller associations. The purpose is … Continue reading
