CURRENT RESEARCH

Title

Using an Eight-Factor Model to Detect Differences in Error Attitudes at a Regional Airline 

Project Summary

    This study will investigate error attitudes at a regional airline. Primarily, this study will seek to identify any differences that might exist between management and line personnel in relation to error attitudes. It is hypothesized that management will have significantly different attitudes towards errors than line personnel. This would be due to management's more distal (removed) relationship to the "front line" compared to line personnel, who have a more proximal (direct) link.

    This study will be useful in a number of ways: First, it will provide a better general understanding of error attitudes in a high-risk/high consequence industry. To date, there have been few, if any, studies conducted on error attitudes with a valid and reliable instrument. Second, it will provide a better understanding of differences in error attitudes that might exist between two levels of an organizational hierarchy. Third, tangentially it will provide a peek into an organization's safety culture. One of the necessities of a good safety culture is open communication between all levels of an organization. This would include reporting and communicating errors, learning from errors, and working proactively at all levels to prevent errors. Currently, and not surprisingly, there is somewhat of a stigma attached to committing an error with corresponding embarrassment, reluctance to report, and a tendency to "cover up" an error. Change is needed in this respect. Hopefully the results of this study will help to catalyze this change.                              

Principle Investigator

Robert Baron, Ph.D

Research Partners Wanted

We are currently seeking various types of aviation organizations (domestic and international) that might be interested in participating in a similar, future study. There is absolutely no expense to your organization! Please contact us for further information.