Human performance interfaces in air traffic control

Area of Science:

• Human Factors and Ergonomics
• Aviation Psychology
• Systems Engineering

Background:

• Air traffic control (ATC) systems involve complex interactions between human performance factors.
• Existing models like SHEL provide a framework but require extension to capture dynamic interdependencies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the mutual interactions among human performance factors within the ATC system.
• To extend the SHEL model to conceptualize ATC as a network of human performance interfaces.
• To test hypotheses regarding the influence of organizational factors versus individual and peer influences.

Main Methods:

• Development of new research hypotheses based on an extended SHEL model.
• Data collection from air traffic controllers.
• Application of structural equation modeling to analyze interrelationships between human performance interfaces.

Main Results:

• Organizational influences were found to be more significant than individual differences or peer influences on controller interactions with software, hardware, and environment.
• Mutual influences were identified between controller-software, controller-hardware, controller-environment, and controller-organisation interfaces.
• The controller-controller interface showed no significant mutual influence in this study.

Conclusions:

• Organizational factors are critical drivers of human performance in ATC systems.
• Understanding these interdependencies is vital for managing system changes and mitigating potential consequences.
• The extended SHEL model provides a valuable framework for analyzing complex human-system interactions in aviation.