An examination of the human factors attitudes and knowledge of Surface Warfare Officers

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis was to evaluate the attitudes and knowledge of Surface Warfare Officers (SWOs) regarding human factors issues that have been identified as causal to mishaps in high-risk organizations. Attitudes to the human factors that are critical for safety were assessed using a 36-item survey (116 responses) based upon the naval aviation version of the cockpit management attitudes questionnaire (CMAQ). No effects were found in the attitudes of respondents based upon experience, type of ship on which they had last served, or whether they had attended the Navy's Bridge Resource Management training (BRM; human factors training designed to improve safety and performance). Human factors knowledge was evaluated using a 10-item multiple choice test. No effects were found in the knowledge of the 116 respondents based upon the type of ship on which they had last served, or whether they had attended BRM training. However, a significant effect of experience was found. On the basis of these findings, recommendations are made on how the effectiveness of the Navy's BRM program could be improved.