Psychology Commons^™

A Validation Of The Efficacy Of Descriptive Instrumental Collective Case Study Research Methodology For Examining Pilot Cognitive Functioning, Clint R. Balog

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The research conducted developed a descriptive understanding of how the cognitive processes of risk assessment, problem solving, and decision making, as well as other supportive processes, are employed by pilots-in-command (PICs) during the experience of extended, extreme, in-flight emergencies. This understanding is then applied to similar dynamic, operational environments. The research also validated the applicability and efficacy of Robert Stake’s 1995 descriptive, instrumental, collective case study methodology as a tool for investigating such phenomenon and developing such an understanding. Specifically, the research details the necessary procedures for employing this methodology successfully, and provides example of those procedures, and their results, …

Stress Coping Strategies In Indian Military Pilots-Preliminary Observations, Catherine Joseph

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

ABSTRACT

In aviators, stress coping has been linked to flying performance and has a bearing on flight safety and mission effectiveness. The objective of this research was to study coping strategies utilized by Indian military pilots. A sample of 160 military pilots was asked to complete a demographic data sheet and the Stress Coping Checklist. Preliminary findings suggest that, Indian pilots use flexible problem and emotion focussed coping strategies. This issue needs to be taken into account in both occupational and clinical realms of future research investigations on aviators.

Personality Types Of Pilot Students: A Study Of An Australian Collegiate Aviation Program, Yi Gao, Stephen Kong

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Many studies have explored personality types of civil and military pilots, however research into pilot students currently or recently undertaking flight training is relatively limited. By using the Australian Personality Inventory (API) as the survey instrument, this study explored personality scales of the pilot student cohort pursing academic degrees and flying qualifications in an Australian collegiate aviation program, and compared personality types of aviation students to non-aviation students. Results of the current study found that Agreeableness (A) and Conscientiousness (C) are the two most dominant personality scales for pilot students, accounting for over 60% of sample. The study also found …

User Interface Design Recommendations For Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (Suas), Camilo Jimenez, Caitlin L. Faerevaag, Florian Jentsch

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The number of small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) has dramatically increased in recent years. As a consequence, the number of incidents involving manned and unmanned aircraft has soared. For this reason, the Federal Aviation Administration has released a notice of proposed rulemaking to delineate the operational limitations for sUAS. Many efforts have been introduced to regulate the operations of these systems and educate operators. Despite these efforts, there are no clear standards related to the type of information that should be available to operators, or how this information should be conveyed during flight operations. For this reason we present a …

Commercial Aircraft Electronic Checklists: Benefits And Challenges (Literature Review), Paul L. Myers Iii

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Procedural omissions and errors have been an inherent problem in aviation since 1935 when a B-17 crashed shortly after takeoff to the era of today’s advanced aircraft. Paper, then electronic, checklists were developed to address those omissions and errors. Electronic checklists attempt to further reduce paper checklist errors and results indicate some improvements have occurred. However, new error modes and unique challenges surfaced with electronic checklists that must be recognized and addressed.

Note: This is a non-peer refereed literature review paper.

Cross-Sectional Assessment Of Safety Culture Perceptions And Safety Behavior In Collegiate Aviation Programs In The United States, Daniel Kwasi Adjekum, Julius Keller, Micah Walala, John P. Young, Cody Christensen, Randal J. Demik, Gary J. Northam Ph.D.

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

A cross-sectional quasi- mixed-method approach was used to determine the relationships between safety culture perceptions and safety reporting behavior among flight students with and without certified flight instructor (CFI) ratings. Respondents (n=259) were recruited from five collegiate aviation programs in the US and took part in the study. Survey Items adopted from the Collegiate Aviation Perception of Safety Culture Assessment Survey (CAPSCAS) were validated using factor analysis analyzed for reliability before use in the study. Researchers sought to find out if the safety reporting behavior (reporting frequency) of respondents could be predicted from their safety culture perceptions. Pearson’s …

The Effect Of Regional Airline Attendance Policies On Pilot Self-Removal From Duty For Illness Or Fatigue, David R. Freiwald Ph.D., Csp, Michael F. O'Toole Ph.D.

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The purpose of this paper was to study the effect of current regional airline attendance policies on the willingness of crewmembers to remove themselves from duty when ill or fatigued. This study sought to determine if the current punitive attendance policies are encouraging crewmembers to operate contrary to federal regulation. A survey was given to current pilots of four regional airlines with similar attendance policies. The responses were correlated with supplied demographic and experiential data. The goal of the paper was to examine the major areas of concern and suggested solutions. The overwhelming majority of respondents felt that their companies’ …

Risk Perception In Aviation Students: Weather Matters, Ric Ferraro Phd, Darci Vandyke, Mary Zander, Krista Anderson, Bethany Kuehlen

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Sixty-three aviation major students and 71 non-aviation major students participated in an experiment concerning aviation experience and risk perception (Risk Perception Scale, RPS; Hunter, 2002). Non-aviation students rated three of the RPS risk scenarios (P2Fly, P2Life, P2 Base) as having higher perceived risk than aviation students with the exception of the weather risk scenarios (P2WX). Aviation students perceived the P2WX scenarios to be significantly more risky. These results have implications for how future pilots perceive risk.

Human Behavior During Spaceflight - Evidence From An Analog Environment, Kenny M. Arnaldi, Guy Smith, Jennifer E. Thropp

Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research

Spaceflight offers a multitude of stressors to humans living and working in space, originating from the external space environment and the life-support system. Future space participants may be ordinary people with different medical and psychosocial backgrounds who may not receive the intense spaceflight preparation of astronauts. Consequently, during a mission, a space participant’s mood and behavior could differ from a trained astronaut. This study was an exploratory research project that used an artificial habitat to replicate an orbital environment and the activities performed by humans in space. The study evaluated whether the type of environment affects mood and temperament. Two …

Reliability Of Eyewitness Reports To A Major Aviation Accident, Dave English, Michael Kuzel

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

There is a paucity of studies on the reliability of eyewitness reports to aviation crashes. We examine witness statements to a widely observed major airline accident to determine if reported accident investigator distrust of details in eyewitness reports is supported by empirical evidence. The extensive archival witness record (N > 300) of a wide-body airliner crash in clear daylight conditions is subjected to statistical analysis to test eyewitness reliability. Even with over 200 witnesses within a three square kilometre (1.6 square mile) area answering a binary observation question, the variance is sometimes high enough to preclude forming statistically significant conclusions …

Measurable Outcomes Of Safety Culture In Aviation - A Meta-Analytic Review, Benjamin J. Goodheart, Maryjo O. Smith

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Though the complimentary concepts of safety culture and safety climate have become increasingly popular over the past three decades, they have only infrequently been central to research designed to examine the empirical relationship between safety culture and safety performance. This tenuous link between culture and safety performance outcomes is especially prevalent in the aviation sector. This study systematically examined the existing literature for empirical evidence and explored the available data via meta-analysis to determine whether safety culture was significantly predictive of safety performance in an aviation operational environment. Although a broad, careful review of the literature was accomplished, the results …

Kinematic Effects In Large Transport Aircraft, Shem Malmquist, Dennis A. Vincenzi Ph.D., Dahai Liu Ph.D.

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The control of an aircraft relies on sensory feedback. It follows that any aspect that could create a situation where that feedback is faulty can lead to unintended outcomes. The size of very large jet aircraft can result in kinematic effects that impact the perceptions of the flight crew. Due to the large amount of inertia involved, coupled with aerodynamic factors, when the aircraft pitch (θ) is initially changed, the short term actual motion of the aircraft, as viewed from the center of gravity, remains relatively unchanged. As a consequence of aircraft design, this results in the flight deck changing …

Consumer Perceptions Of Starting Regional Pilot Pay Given Additional Qualifications, Scott R. Winter, Stephen Rice, Timothy G. Rosser, Rian Mehta, Ayu Rice

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Public Law 111-216, passed in 2010, has drastically increased the required number of flight hours necessary to become a commercial airline pilot from 250 hours to 1,500 hours in the United States. Intended to increase the safety and qualifications of commercial airline pilots, one possible unintended consequence may be fewer pilots pursuing an airline career due to increased training costs, with no apparent increase in starting salary. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine consumer perceptions of how much additional pay starting first officers should make based on this new law. American participants from Amazon’s ® Mechanical Turk …

Passengers From India And The United States Have Differential Opinions About Autonomous Auto-Pilots For Commercial Flights, Stephen Rice, Keegan Kraemer, Scott R. Winter, Rian Mehta, Victoria Dunbar, Timothy G. Rosser, Julie C. Moore

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

There has been much previous research on cultural differences between the United States and India, as well as some research on consumer attitudes towards auto-pilots in commercial airlines. However, to date, there has been no research that examines how passengers from different countries feel about auto-pilots and remote-controlled (RC) pilots in commercial aircraft, or how they feel about their co-workers or children flying in these situations. The current study manipulates both the type of pilot (human pilot, auto-pilot, and RC pilot) and the passenger (participant, child of participant, or work colleague) and examines three different dependent variables (comfort level, trust …

Do "Suicide Bombers" Really Commit Suicide?, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

By Israel Oron (Ostre), Ph.D., Psychologist, National Program for Suicide Prevention, Ministry of Health, Israel, and The Department for Psychology, Health and Ethics/ University of Haifa, Israel.

[Dr. Oron (Ostre) was formerly Psychologist, Behavior Section/The Department of Criminal Investigations & Intelligence, Israel Police HQ].

This article applies a psychological approach to explore and to explain the behavior of Palestinian terrorists who blow themselves up in the light of their own words. It is shown that terrorists have no suicidal intent; hence, their behavior is not an act of suicide. Psychological analysis point to a behavioral reaction to stress situations that …

Psychological Assessment: What Will The Future Bring?, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses the (de)valuation of psychological assessment from various perspectives.

Taking It Off In The Mideast, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author explores the concept of democracy and the impact of financial, moral, and sexual corruption in the Middle East.

The Name Game As Blame Game: The Domodedovo Terrorist Bombing, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses the relevance of blame in the context of terrorism.

The Giffords Shooting: Who’S The Fall Guy?, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author explores the concept of ‘the fall guy’ from a political philosophical perspective.

The November 2010 Elections: Verification And Nuclear Weapons Reduction, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses the results of the November 2010 elections in the United States (US), the transition of power between two very different Senates, and US participation in international treaties pertaining to nuclear weapons. Of note, are the roles of and problems with the idea of verification as per modern logical positivism.

The Yemen Narrative: Cargo Cults And Cargo Security, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author gives a psychological perspective on the security of aviation cargo shipments.

In Drag On Drugs, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

Since commentators generally assert that the war on illegal and illicit drugs has been a failure, we should evaluate the assertion and, then, opine on why there is a war, winnable or not.

Memory And True Lies, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article discusses the concept of memory, its relation to culture, and three hypothetical phenomena associated with it.

Giving Foot The Boot: Right Or Wrong?, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The article examines philosopher Philippa Foot’s famous conundrum – The Trolley Problem.

Cybersecurity: Growing Like Topsy!, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article discusses cybersecurity in an intelligence context – what it is, what it does to us, and the sudden (and somewhat unplanned) increase in financial support for the area.

Venus In Furs: Why False Confessions Are True, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses the nature of truth and false confessions in the context of confession and interrogation.

The Strange Fruit Of 9/11, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses the 9/11/2001 terrorist attacks and the larger psychological narrative and context of the attacks. Stoicism is considered as a viable response.

American Graffiti: Musings On The Ground Zero Mosque, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses reactions and parallels to a mosque proposed near the site of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in public discourse.

Dirty Laundry: A Philosophical Primer For Politicians On Scandal, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article discusses the management of post-sex scandals by politicians from a variety of theoretical and/or philosophical perspectives.

Fool For Love: The Psychology Of Security Violation, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article discusses why Pfc. Bradley Manning, United States (US) Army, who has been accused of illegally disclosing classified material—more than 150,000 diplomatic cables, 90,000 intelligence reports, and at least one video – allegedly performed the actions in question.