unit_3_human factors %26 interpersonal relationship

7/30/2019 Unit_3_human Factors %26 Interpersonal Relationship

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Human Factors andInterpersonal Relationship

UNIT 3 HUMAN FACTORS ANDINTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIP

Structure3.1 Introduction

Objectives

3 2 Understanding of Human Factors

3.3 Reasons for Variation in Human Performance

3.4 Role of Human Error in Accidents

3.5 Importance of Developing Human Development Skills

3.6 Importance of Effective Interpersonal Relationships

3.7 Building and Maintaining Harmonious and Productive Relationships with

People on Board3.8 Handling Relationships in a Hierarchical Environment

3.9 Summary

3.10 Answers to SAQs

3.11 Key words

3.12 References

3.1 INTRODUCTION

Todays ship systems are technologically advanced and highly reliable. Although theinternational shipping industry remains one of the most technically vibrant and

innovative businesses in the world today, as we move into the 21st Century, the focus forthose who are concerned with safety at sea is being placed ever more sharply on allaspects of human behavior. Why? In this unit, we shall look at the human factors whichinfluence performance of professional duties.

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Get What You Want, When You Want It, And From Whom You Want It... Including The Difficult People You Come Across On A Daily Basis. Ever given a thought how?

ObjectivesAfter studying this unit, you should be able to

describe the importance of understanding of human factors, know the reasons for variation in human performance, understand role of human error in accidents, and know the importance of developing human development skills. explain the importance of effective interpersonal relationships, build and maintain harmonious and productive relationships with people on

board, and handle relationships in a hierarchical environment.


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English and HumanFactors 3.2 UNDERSTANDING OF HUMAN FACTORS

The study of human factors is devoted to understanding human capabilities andlimitations. This includes applying this information to design equipment, work environments, procedures, and policies that are compatible with human abilities. In thisway we can design technology, environments, and organizations that will work with people to enhance their performance, instead of working against people and hinder/bringdown their performance.

This kind of human-centered approach (that is, adapting the system to the human) hasmany benefits, including increased efficiency effectiveness and morale and, decreasederrors accidents, training costs, personnel injuries and lost time.

3.3 REASONS FOR VARIATION IN HUMANPERFORMANCE

The maritime system is a people system. People interact with technology, theenvironment, and organizational factors. Sometimes the weak link is with the peoplethemselves; but more often the weak link is the way that human, technological,organizational, or environmental factors influence the way a human being performs.These linkages are shown in Fig. 3.1.

Figure 3.1: Interactions of people

Technology Environment

People

Organization

Technology

People

Environment

Organization

Figure 3.1: Interactions of People

Let us look at each of these factors in some detail. In the maritime system this couldinclude the ships crew, pilots, dock workers, Vessel Traffic Service operators, andothers. The performance of these people will be dependent on many traits, both innateand learned which include their:

Knowledge Specific information and understanding of the job/role or thetechnology one is working with, is an important factor influencing human

performance. Skills The proficiency, facility, or dexterity that is acquired or developed

through training or experience, i.e. a talent or ability that has been developedby putting knowledge into practice.


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Abilities Abilities refer to an individuals natural or acquired mental orphysical power to accomplish the job assigned to him/her.

Memory Memory refers to the process of reproducing or recalling whathas been learned. In context of human performance it means an individualsability to recall what was learned through training or experience and apply itin ones job.

Motivation A learned behaviour occurs only if it is energized/ backed bya reason; that which gives purpose and direction. Both observation andresearch show that motivated employees are more productive.

Alertness In the merchant navy, alertness is an important determinant of human performance. The nature of the job requires an individual to bewatchful and quick in perceiving and responding to danger or emergency.

Human Factors

As human beings, we all have certain abilities and limitations. For example,human beings are great at pattern discrimination and recognition. There isnt amachine in the world that can interpret a radar screen as perfectly as a trainedhuman being can. On the other hand, we are fairly limited in our memory capacityand in our ability to calculate numbers quickly and accurately machines can do amuch better job. In addition to these inborn characteristics, human performance isalso influenced by the knowledge and skills we have acquired, as well as byinternal regulators such as motivation and alertness.

Organizational Factors

Both crew organization and company policies affect human performance (Fig.3.2).

Organizational Factors

Work Schedules Training Communication Hierarchy and

Structure of Team Safety Culture

Human Performance

Fatigue Knowledge and

Skills Work Practices Teamwork Risk-Taking

Figure 3.2: Organizational Factors and Human Performance Interlink

Crew size and training decisions directly affect crew workload and theircapabilities to perform safely and effectively. A strict hierarchical commandstructure can inhibit effective teamwork, whereas free, interactive communicationscan enhance it.

Work schedules which do not provide the individual with regular and sufficientsleep time produce fatigue. Although each member of the team has specific dutiesto perform, there are certain times when it is difficult to fully pre-plan tasks into aset time schedule. For instance, when the ship is in port and there is time pressureto complete operations as quickly as possible, the usual daily routine followed onboard will be disrupted and all on board may find themselves working at odd andlong hours. Very often, the route of the ship and the time between ports is alsoplanned at short notice so the team may not be aware of the plan for a few months


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English and HumanFactors

down the line. This uncertainty may effect an individuals performance and thenan individual needs to learn to adapt to the changing and unpredictableenvironment.

The hierarchy and structure on board can play a major role in performance. Withan encouraging and supportive team, the opportunity to learn and improve isgreatly enhanced. However if the rest of the team is also overworked andburdened, then the onus to take the initiative to learn lies more with the individual.

Company policies with respect to meeting schedules and working safely willdirectly influence the degree of risk-taking behaviour and operational safety.

Environmental Factors

The environment affects performance too. By environment we include not onlyweather physical work environment (such as lighting, noise, and temperature), butalso the regulatory and economic climates. The physical work environmentdirectly affects ones ability to perform. For example, the human body performsbest in a fairly restricted temperature range. Performance will be affected attemperatures outside that range, and fail altogether in extreme temperatures.

High sea states and ship vibrations can affect locomotion and manual dexterity, aswell as cause stress and fatigue. Tight economic conditions can increase theprobability of risk-taking (e.g., maintaining the schedule at all costs).

Technological Factors

Finally, the design of technology can have a big impact on how people perform.For example, people come in certain sizes and have limited strength. So when apiece of equipment meant to be used outside is designed with data entry keys thatare too small and too close together to be operated by a gloved hand, or if a cut-off valve is positioned out of easy reach, these designs will have a detrimental effect

on performance.Automation is often designed without much thought to the information that theuser needs to access. Critical information is sometimes either not displayed at allor else displayed in a manner which is not easy to interpret. Such designs can leadto inadequate comprehension of the state of the system and to poor decisionmaking.

SAQ 1

(a) What do you understand by human factors?

(b) What are the benefits of adopting human centered approach?

(c) What are the factors that affect human performance on board the ship?

3.4 ROLE OF HUMAN ERROR IN ACCIDENTS

Over the last 40 years or so, the shipping industry has focused on improving the shipsstructure and the reliability of ship systems .This has to reduce casualties and increase theefficiency and productivity. We have seen improvements in hull design, stabilitysystems, propulsion systems, and navigational equipment. Todays ship systems aretechnologically advanced and highly reliable.


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Yet, the maritime casualty rate is still high. Why is it that, with all these improvements,we have not significantly reduced the risk of accidents? It is because the ship structureand system reliability are a relatively small part of the safety equation. The maritimesystem is a people system, and human errors figure prominently in casualty situations.About 75-96% of marine casualties are caused, at least in part, by some form of humanerror. Studies have shown that human error contributes to:

84-88% of tanker accidents

79% of towing vessel grounding

89-96% of collisions

75% of fires and explosions

As you can see, while human errors are all too often blamed on carelessness or lack of attention or mistakes on the part of the operator, more often they are symptomatic of deeper and more complicated problems in the total maritime system. Human errors aregenerally caused by technologies, environments, and organizations which areincompatible in some way with optimal human performance. These incompatible factorsset up the human operator to make mistakes. So what is to be done to solve thisproblem? Traditionally, management has tried to either cajole or threaten its personnelnot to make errors and proper motivation could somehow overcome inborn humanlimitations. In other words, the human has been expected to adapt to the system. Thisdoes not work . Instead, what needs to be done is to adapt the system to the human .

SAQ 2

(a) Do you think that human beings contribute to the marine accidents? If yeshow?

(b) What can be the ways by which accidents caused due to human errors canbe minimized?

(c) What are the causes of human errors?

3.5 IMPORTANCE OF DEVELOPING HUMAN

DEVELOPMENT SKILLSHuman beings possess the tendency of learning by listening, seeing and experiencinglifes events. Though their aptitude to perform is based on their knowledge, skill andattitude, all these can be learnt to an extent. Likewise Human Development Skills can bedeveloped too.

The importance of developing a safety culture throughout the maritime transport chainis recognized by all IMOs (International Maritime Organisation) Member States.Nevertheless, there are significant differences in their abilities to make the necessaryinstitutional change, which is why the IMOs technical co-operation mission, designed tohelp developing countries improve their ability to comply with the international rules andstandards, is focused on human resource development, with the emphasis on training andinstitutional capacity-building.

Specific technical co-operation activities include, for example, the provision of technicaland legal advisory services, needs assessments, the delivery of national, regional andglobal workshops, seminars and training courses and the preparation of model legislation.


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There is no doubt that a safety culture must deal with the concept in its broadest possiblesense. The safety of ships and of ships personnel is certainly the most obviousconsideration but the protection of the marine environment is also a key issue.

There are many areas where the industry can improve safety and performance throughthe application of human factors principles. The problems are stress, inadequatecommunication and coordination between pilot and bridge crew, and inadequate

technical knowledge (especially of radar). Below are summaries of these and otherhuman factors areas that need to be attended to in order to prevent casualties.

Stress

This is an important cross-modal issue, in need of improvement in the maritimeindustry. Stress can be due to personal and professional reasons. Developing theskills for managing anger and stress is essential for success in this profession.Stress and fatigue can cause lack of situational awareness which can be really fatalat times.

Mismanagement of Time

This is also a common problem on ships that are highly technical, advanced andevolved but have fewer or limited manpower. With the increasing pressure onindividuals to accomplish their tasks within stipulated time, people tend to forgettask prioritization which may result in improper time management. This thenresults in poor planning and organizing capabilities leading to accidents, mishapsand near misses.

Inadequate Communications

Another area for improvement is communications among shipmates, betweenmasters and pilots, ship-to-ship, and ship-to-VTS. 70% of major marine collisionsand allisions occurred while a State or federal pilot was directing one or bothvessels. Better procedures and training can be designed to promote bettercommunications and coordination on and between vessels.

Effective communication skills include better interpersonal relationship, listeningskills and transmitting skills, giving and taking feedback.

Lack of Motivation and Positive Attitude

People tend to lose their motivational level due to long and routine working hours.They also start missing their near and dear ones. Constant efforts for maintainingpositive frame of mind by being ones own support system is required. Due to lowmoods and frustration, people at times tend to lose their focus, the results of whichare highly risk prone.

Lack of Teamwork

At times, coordination amongst people from varied departments and also withinthe same department is poor. This leads to misunderstandings and results in asituation where tasks and individuals are not in alignment with the group objective.This can happen due to multiple reasons.

Regular training and drills can provide improvement in teamwork. The trainingshould involve people from deck, engine and crew to gain maximum results.

Decisions based on Inadequate Information

Mariners are charged with making navigation decisions based only on availableinformation which may be inadequate. Too often, we have a tendency to rely oneither a favoured piece of equipment or our memory. Many casualties result fromthe failure to consult available information (such as that from radar or an echo-sounder). In other cases, critical information may be lacking or incorrect, leading

to navigation errors (for example, bridge supports often are not marked, or buoysmay be off-station).

Faulty Standards, Policies, or Practices


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This is an oft-cited category and covers a variety of problems. Included in thiscategory is the lack of available, precise, written, and comprehensible operationalprocedures aboard ship (if something goes wrong, and if a well-written manual isnot immediately available, a correct and timely response is much less likely).Other problems in this category include management policies which encouragerisk-taking (like pressure to meet schedules at all costs) and the lack of consistenttraffic rules from port to port.

Poor Maintenance

Poor maintenance can result in a dangerous work environment, lack of workingbackup systems, and crew fatigue from the need to make emergency repairs. Poormaintenance is also a leading cause of fires and explosions. The marineenvironment is not a forgiving one. Currents, winds, and fog make for treacherousworking conditions. When we fail to incorporate these factors into the design of our ships and equipment, and when we fail to adjust our operations based onhazardous environmental conditions, we are at greater risk for casualties.

SAQ 3(a) What are some of the most important human factors challenges facing themaritime industry today?

(b) List some areas that can be improved by skills on human development?

(c) Try to recognize your own areas needing improvement. How do you plan towork on correcting your weaknesses?

(d) Is there any clause in IMO for Human Resource Development? If yes whatdoes it say?

3.6 IMPORTANCE OF EFFECTIVEINTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS

Why do you work on board the ship? You work for money, travel, adventure and otherbenefits, of course. But, once you are making an adequate living and your basic needs aremet, you start expecting that more needs would get fulfilled. Surveys of employed peopledemonstrate that people want challenges in their work. They want appreciation frompeople they hold in esteem. They want their superior to notice when they do more than isexpected. People want to attain their own social needs for which they need to buildinterpersonal relationships with others on board the ship. For this they want to have alliesin their work place too.

People with whom you share a good relationship are likely to support your views andcauses. Colleagues and team workers do not compete with others in an environment of mutual trust and regard; they become each others allies. With healthy interpersonalrelationships, team members provide assistance and often, friendship to each other.

They help solve problems, provide advice, act as a sounding board when you need alistening ear and offer a different perspective so you can view your organization more

broadly. A very important role of an ally for a newcomer on board the ship can be toguide the person for the nuances of appropriate actions and behaviour.


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SAQ 4

(a) Did you take into account the kind of interpersonal skills that you possess?If yes, can you list them here?

(b) Why do you think it is important to have good interpersonal relationships onboard the ship? OR Are interpersonal skills important? Why?

3.7 BUILDING AND MAINTAINING HARMONIOUSAND PRODUCTIVE RELATIONSHIPS WITHPEOPLE ON BOARD

Healthy Interpersonal Relationships amongst the team members ensure safe operationsand security of people and vessels. It fosters growth of the individual as well as the team.Whether your relationship is with your superior or a co-worker, you want to make yourinterpersonal relationships and communication positive, supportive, clear andempowering. With this in mind, here are important techniques that will help you developgood interpersonal relations with your colleagues, superiors and team members:

Effective communication forms the foundation for a positive work alliance.You need to be able to tell your team members what you need and listendeeply to what they need. Try to empathize with the other person.

Nix politics and political discussion at work. In an industry that honoursdiversity, every persons politics, religious beliefs, and opinions about non-work issues, as far as possible should not be breached. Freedom of expression is good in the workplace but a particular set of beliefs, politicaldiscussion potentially causes conflict and hard feelings, so avoid them.

Start with similarities, not differences, among people when you buildrelationships. Effective work relationships on board the ship are critical foryour success. If you start by recognizing the ways in which you are similarto your team members, you will build a base of understanding andacceptance that will withstand the sometimes stormy times when yourdifferences come to the forefront.

Trust is the basis for much of the environment you want to create in yourwork place. Trust is the necessary precursor for being able to rely upon a

person, cooperating with and experiencing teamwork with a group, takingthoughtful risks, and experiencing believable communication. Appreciatively consider the feedback that you get from your seniors and

other team members. Try to control your defensiveness. Summarize andreflect on what you hear. Your feedback provider will appreciate that youare really hearing what they are saying.

Treat everyone with respect. Display unconditional positive regard forothers, no matter what their position is.

Exhibit total professionalism. Never participate in gossip, in discussion,criticism behind peoples backs. People will trust you and know that whatthey tell you is safe in your hands. Strong relationships work when trust ispresent.

When working, always put forth your best efforts. Be the person who iswilling to do extra to strengthen the teamwork and the outcome.


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Give in on little decisions, or the decisions that appear to be much moreimportant to the colleague. Youll more easily gain support for the decisionsthat are important to you.

Keep your promises. If you say you will do something, do it. People need to

depend upon you and the deadlines to which you commit. Again, it is amatter of developing trust.

Resolve any conflicts or disputes at your earliest opportunity. Unresolvedconflict undermines healthy relationships.

Demonstrate professional courage and speak up early. Be an ally. Supportyour colleagues ability to accomplish his mission, too. Give credit for ideasand solutions.

Relationship building is a delicate process that can easily go astray. It takes time, effort,commitment and sometimes not getting what you want. But, if you want to accomplishthis task, assuming that your mission is positive and congruent with your organizations

mission, you must have good interpersonal skills.SAQ 5

(a) Without healthy interpersonal relationships, a safe journey and successfulaccomplishment of professional objectives is not possible. Justify.

(b) How should you encourage others to give you feedback?

(c) What are your strengths that enable you to build and maintain effectiveinterpersonal relationship with your team members?

(d) What are the areas where you feel you have to make efforts for improvingyour interpersonal skills?

3.8 HANDLING RELATIONSHIPS IN AHIERARCHICAL ENVIRONMENT

On board the ship, organizational structure follows a hierarchical system where ranks aredistinguished from each other. There are three main departments of the ship the deck,the engine and the service department, differentiated from each other on the basis of thefunctions these respective departments perform. The work environment is marked byauthority and chain of command.

In such a system, interpersonal relationships cannot be absolutely informal, as regard forthe structural work environment is a must. Apart from practising the above mentionedtips and techniques, a few other aspects have to be considered while buildinginterpersonal relationships which are as follows:

Dont ignore the chain of command. If C/O has already assigned you a joband while it is still incomplete you are given a task by the Captain, dontignore either of the two. Analyze whose job requires priority andcommunicate to the other person accordingly about the status of the work.

Set your limits right. Use your commonsense to assess which issue to sharewith others and which need not be discussed with others.


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Never back-stab or blind-side anyone. If you have a problem with anindividuals actions, talk to him directly. Dont talk to his or your immediatesuperior because if that is the first person your ally hears from about aproblem, you have blown the most fundamental understanding of analliance. If you let your ally down, you could spend years redeveloping therelationship.

Be available to listen, to strategize and to occasionally spend time togetherkeeping in mind that you are not ignoring your assigned tasks. Make sureyou are not forming an exclusive club that the rest of the people will fearand resent.

When an argument or disagreement of opinion occurs and you find yourself becoming defensive or hostile, practice stress management techniques suchas taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

If you really disagree, or are angry upset, and want to disagree with theother persons opinion, wait until your emotions are under control to reopenthe discussion.

If you get a negative feedback from others and you disagree with it, focus onunderstanding the feedback given by questioning and restating the content.This usually defuses any feelings you have of hostility or anger.

SAQ 6

(a) What are the important aspects that you have to keep in mind while buildingrelationships on board the ship?

(b) How can you control your anger and resentment when you disagree with asenior officer?

(c) How would you deal with negative feedback?

3.9 SUMMARY

This Unit has introduced the concept of human error. We have seen that human error

(and usually multiple errors made by multiple people) contributes to the vast majority(75-96%) of marine casualties, making the prevention of human error of paramountimportance if we wish to reduce the number and severity of maritime accidents.

Many human errors were described, the majority of which were shown not to be thefault of the human operator. Rather, most of these errors tend to occur as a result of technologies, work environments, and organizational factors which do not sufficientlyconsider the abilities and limitations of the people who must interact with them, thussetting up the human operator for failure. Human errors can be reduced significantly.

Certain areas which can be improved by developing human development skills have beenrecognized and it has been suggested that one works on identifying and improving them.

This unit has explained the importance of interpersonal relationships. So it also explainsin detail the ways and means of maintaining and developing effective interpersonalrelationships in a professional environment on the ship.


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The organizational structure of a ship has been briefly described and the care that needsto be taken while handling relationship in such an environment has been discussed atlength.

3.10 ANSWERS TO SAQsSAQ 1

(a) Answer given in 5.2 section(b) Benefits of adopting human centered approach increases efficiency,

Effectiveness decreases errors and accidents.

(c) Write about human factors, organizational factors technological,environmental factors briefly.

SAQ 2

(a) Attempt yourself

(b) To reduce human errors- Management needs to be strict to the personnel who commit errors.

This sets up an example.

- Need to adapt the entire marine system to meet the requirement of human factor.

(c) Causes of human errors- Carelessness- Lack of attention- Other reasons related to technologies environment, organization etc.

SAQ 3

(a) Elaborate the given points.Human factors challenges facing maritime industry are: (i) Stress;

(ii) Mismanagement; (iii) Lack of communication; (iv) Lack of motivationteamwork; (v) Inadequate information which would affect decisions; (vi)Poor Maintenance and Inferior standards.

(b) Attempt yourself (c) Attempt yourself

SAQ 4

(a) Attempt yourself (b) Interpersonal Relationship is important

- For Friendship- For Assistance- For Healthy relationship- For Appreciation- To fulfil and attain your social needs- Help to solve problem- Provide Advice

SAQ 5(a) For successful accomplishment of professional objectives the

existence of healthy interpersonal relationship is very essential. Somerequirements are:


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(i) Positive and conqential work atmosphere

(ii) Freedom of expression

(iii) Trust and Respect for co-operation from co-workers

(iv) Total professionalism

(b) Give benefits of good interpersonal relationship given in the answer

of question(c) To encourage others to give you feedback we should

(i) Show trust and faith

(ii) Be appreciate

(iii) Summarize the feedback you get

(d) Attempt yourself

(e) Attempt yourself

SAQ 6

(a) Interpersonal relations on board can not be totally informal. There

exist a hierarchical system which needs to be followed apart from thestructural work environment that needs to taken into account. Some of theaspects one needs to keep in mind to build relationship on board the ship.

(i) Acknowledge the chain of command and follow it

(ii) Set your limits

(iii) Always talk to the person concerned in case of a problem andget thing clarified immediately to avoid misunderstanding.

(iv) Be a good listener analyze, strategize spend time withothers be open to all

(v) In case of a disagreement dont allow yourself to become

hostile defensive practice stress management and wait foryour emotions to come under control

(vi) In case of negative feedback assess the feedback with a cool mind.

(b) To control anger practice

- Stress management techniques

- wait for your emotions to come under control

(c) To deal with negative feedback

- Be focussed, understanding assess the feedback given byquestioning and restating the content of the feedback.

3.11 KEY WORDS

Empathy : Empathizing means putting yourself in the other personsshoes to unde

rstand him.

Authority : The rights inherent in a rank or position to give ordersand which expect the orders to be obeyed.


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Chain of Command : The unbroken line of authority that extends from the topof organization to the lowest rank and clarifies whoreports to whom.

3.12 REFERENCEShttp://humanresources.about.com/od/workrelationships/

http://jwit.webinstituteforteachers.org/~awasser/webquests/

Organization Behaviour, 10 th ed. by Stephen Robbins, published by: Pearson EducationSingapore Pte.Ltd. Copyright 2004.

unit_3_human factors %26 interpersonal relationship

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