Operator Situational Awareness and System Safety

Studies of the dependency between complex, dynamic systems and their human operators often focus on human-computer interactions without considering the emergent properties of human-machine systems in use. As systems become more complex, and typical operating environments more dynamic, the role of the operator has typically changed from providing manual to cognitive control. The nature of the interaction in these modern systems has changed from physical work with the body to cognitive work with the mind. This view is characterised by the ‘glass cockpit’ design of many modern aircraft where the pilot is often removed from direct manual interaction to assume a system management role.