Behind Human Error

Author: David Woods
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1317175530
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 495

Book Description
Human error is cited over and over as a cause of incidents and accidents. The result is a widespread perception of a 'human error problem', and solutions are thought to lie in changing the people or their role in the system. For example, we should reduce the human role with more automation, or regiment human behavior by stricter monitoring, rules or procedures. But in practice, things have proved not to be this simple. The label 'human error' is prejudicial and hides much more than it reveals about how a system functions or malfunctions. This book takes you behind the human error label. Divided into five parts, it begins by summarising the most significant research results. Part 2 explores how systems thinking has radically changed our understanding of how accidents occur. Part 3 explains the role of cognitive system factors - bringing knowledge to bear, changing mindset as situations and priorities change, and managing goal conflicts - in operating safely at the sharp end of systems. Part 4 studies how the clumsy use of computer technology can increase the potential for erroneous actions and assessments in many different fields of practice. And Part 5 tells how the hindsight bias always enters into attributions of error, so that what we label human error actually is the result of a social and psychological judgment process by stakeholders in the system in question to focus on only a facet of a set of interacting contributors. If you think you have a human error problem, recognize that the label itself is no explanation and no guide to countermeasures. The potential for constructive change, for progress on safety, lies behind the human error label.

Human Error

Author: James Reason
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521314190
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 324

Book Description
This 1991 book is a major theoretical integration of several previously isolated literatures looking at human error in major accidents.

The Field Guide to Human Error Investigations

Author: Sidney Dekker
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351786032
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 137

Book Description
This title was first published in 2002: This field guide assesses two views of human error - the old view, in which human error becomes the cause of an incident or accident, or the new view, in which human error is merely a symptom of deeper trouble within the system. The two parts of this guide concentrate on each view, leading towards an appreciation of the new view, in which human error is the starting point of an investigation, rather than its conclusion. The second part of this guide focuses on the circumstances which unfold around people, which causes their assessments and actions to change accordingly. It shows how to "reverse engineer" human error, which, like any other componant, needs to be put back together in a mishap investigation.

Considerations Behind Human Error

Author: Ferdinando Restina
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 0244680132
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 314

Book Description
WHAT COMMON FACTORS CONNECT THE DEATH OF MARY SANDERS DURING A SIMPLE SURGICAL INTERVENTION, CHERNOBYL NUCLEAR DISASTER, AND THE COSTA CONCORDIA SHIPWRECK? WAS IT A FATAL MINDSET, DEFECTIVE EQUIPMENT, AN ACT OF DESTINY OR...' IT IS THE HUMAN ERROR THE THREAD THAT BINDS THESE (AND MANY OTHER) TRAGIC EVENTS. HOW TO BEST PREVENT, MANAGE AND MITIGATE ITS EFFECTS AND CONSEQUENCES IS THE SUBJECT OF STUDY BY CPT. FERDINANDO RESTINA.

Human Error

Author: Gregory Scott
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781536118254
Category : Accidents
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Accidents happen because of the reduction in adaptable capabilities or because inadaptability takes over. Inadaptability is the failure to adapt according to changed circumstances, settings or time. The occurrence of human errors in manual assembly lines can be affected by factors, such as workplace condition, work environment, equipment and demographics factors. Another topic explored in this book is forensic science which is concerned with the application of scientific knowledge to legal problem resolution. It is a vital tool in any legal proceeding, because it helps the judge and the jury to understand scientific truth. Also, human error in medicine is a major threat to patient safety. Therefore, it is vital to reveal factors that cause performance deficits in medical work environments. On the basis of the human error sources identified, human factors training programs can be designed as one possible approach to preventing accidents and increasing safety. Human error has been cited as a common cause in disasters and accidents in diverse high-risk industries and in healthcare. This book focuses on organizational, social and individual causes for the development of conditions behind human errors.

Human Errors

Author: Nathan H. Lents
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 1328974677
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 255

Book Description
A biology professor’s “funny, fascinating” tour of the physical imperfections—from faulty knees to junk DNA—that make us human (Discover). We humans like to think of ourselves as highly evolved creatures. But if we are supposedly evolution’s greatest creation, why do we have such bad knees? Why do we catch head colds so often—two hundred times more often than a dog does? How come our wrists have so many useless bones? Why is the vast majority of our genetic code pointless? And are we really supposed to swallow and breathe through the same narrow tube? Surely there’s been some kind of mistake? As professor of biology Nathan H. Lents explains in Human Errors, our evolutionary history is indeed nothing if not a litany of mistakes, each more entertaining and enlightening than the last. The human body is one big pile of compromises. But that is also a testament to our greatness: as Lents shows, humans have so many design flaws precisely because we are very, very good at getting around them. A rollicking, deeply informative tour of humans’ four-billion-year-and-counting evolutionary saga, Human Errors both celebrates our imperfections and offers an unconventional accounting of the cost of our success. “An insightful and entertaining romp through the myriad ways in which the human body falls short of an engineering ideal—and the often-surprising reasons why.” —Ian Tattersall, author of The Monkey in the Mirror

A Human Error Approach to Aviation Accident Analysis

Author: Douglas A. Wiegmann
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351962353
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 174

Book Description
Human error is implicated in nearly all aviation accidents, yet most investigation and prevention programs are not designed around any theoretical framework of human error. Appropriate for all levels of expertise, the book provides the knowledge and tools required to conduct a human error analysis of accidents, regardless of operational setting (i.e. military, commercial, or general aviation). The book contains a complete description of the Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS), which incorporates James Reason's model of latent and active failures as a foundation. Widely disseminated among military and civilian organizations, HFACS encompasses all aspects of human error, including the conditions of operators and elements of supervisory and organizational failure. It attracts a very broad readership. Specifically, the book serves as the main textbook for a course in aviation accident investigation taught by one of the authors at the University of Illinois. This book will also be used in courses designed for military safety officers and flight surgeons in the U.S. Navy, Army and the Canadian Defense Force, who currently utilize the HFACS system during aviation accident investigations. Additionally, the book has been incorporated into the popular workshop on accident analysis and prevention provided by the authors at several professional conferences world-wide. The book is also targeted for students attending Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University which has satellite campuses throughout the world and offers a course in human factors accident investigation for many of its majors. In addition, the book will be incorporated into courses offered by Transportation Safety International and the Southern California Safety Institute. Finally, this book serves as an excellent reference guide for many safety professionals and investigators already in the field.

Safety Differently

Author: Sidney Dekker
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1482242001
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 304

Book Description
The second edition of a bestseller, Safety Differently: Human Factors for a New Era is a complete update of Ten Questions About Human Error: A New View of Human Factors and System Safety. Today, the unrelenting pace of technology change and growth of complexity calls for a different kind of safety thinking. Automation and new technologies have resu

Descartes' Error

Author: Antonio Damasio
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 014303622X
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 338

Book Description
Since Descartes famously proclaimed, "I think, therefore I am," science has often overlooked emotions as the source of a person’s true being. Even modern neuroscience has tended, until recently, to concentrate on the cognitive aspects of brain function, disregarding emotions. This attitude began to change with the publication of Descartes’ Error in 1995. Antonio Damasio—"one of the world’s leading neurologists" (The New York Times)—challenged traditional ideas about the connection between emotions and rationality. In this wondrously engaging book, Damasio takes the reader on a journey of scientific discovery through a series of case studies, demonstrating what many of us have long suspected: emotions are not a luxury, they are essential to rational thinking and to normal social behavior.

Understanding Human Error in Mine Safety

Author: Mr Geoff Simpson
Publisher: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN: 1409486087
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 293

Book Description
The consideration of human factors issues is vital to the mining industry. As in other safety-critical domains, human performance problems constitute a significant threat to system safety, making the study of human factors an important field for improving safety in mining operations. The primary purpose of this book is to provide the reader with a much-needed overview of human factors within the mining industry, in particular to understand the role of human error in mine safety, explaining contemporary risk management and safety systems approaches. The approach taken is multidisciplinary and holistic, based on a model of the systems of work in the mining industry domain. The ingredients in this model include individual operators, groups/teams, technology/equipment, work organisation and the physical environment. Throughout the book, topics such as human error and safety management are covered through the use of real examples and case studies, allowing the reader to see the practical significance of the material presented while making the text rigorous, useful and enjoyable. Understanding Human Error in Mine Safety is written for professionals in the field, researchers and students of mining engineering, safety or human factors.