Identification of non-technical skills from the resilience engineering perspective: A case study of an electricity distributor

► A new concept of NTS is proposed; four procedures operationalize the RE perspective on NTS identification. ► A concept map shows the relationships among these procedures. ► NTS are dependent on the context in which they are conducted. ► NTS can be either adaptations of procedures or they can be ne...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Safety science 2013-01, Vol.51 (1), p.37-48
Main Authors: Saurin, Tarcisio Abreu, Wachs, Priscila, Henriqson, Éder
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Electricians
Medical sciences
Miscellaneous
Non-technical skills
Occupational medicine
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
Resilience engineering
Safety at work
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Summary:► A new concept of NTS is proposed; four procedures operationalize the RE perspective on NTS identification. ► A concept map shows the relationships among these procedures. ► NTS are dependent on the context in which they are conducted. ► NTS can be either adaptations of procedures or they can be needed due to adaptations. Training in non-technical skills (NTSs) does not usually question the design of the work system but focuses narrowly on workers as the unit of analysis. This study discusses how the identification of NTS, a major step for developing an NTS training program, might be re-interpreted from the perspective of resilience engineering (RE). This discussion is based on a case study of identifying NTS for electricians who perform emergency maintenance activities in an electricity distribution network. The case study showed that four data collection and analysis procedures might operationalize the RE perspective: (a) by identifying work constraints which create the need for NTS as a means to adjust performance; (b) by identifying recommendations for re-designing the system, which could either eliminate, or reduce the need for, or make it easier to use NTS; (c) by regarding the identification of NTS as an opportunity to give visibility to adaptations carried out by workers; and (d) by classifying the NTS into pragmatic categories, which are meaningful for workers. These procedures aim at emphasizing that the NTS are intertwined with the socio-technical system, and thus have little meaning unless there is a context.
ISSN:0925-7535
1879-1042
DOI:10.1016/j.ssci.2012.06.010