A methodology of human factors analysis for systems engineering: theory and applications

This paper discusses a methodology for studying human erroneous behavior that comprises four modeling phases, namely: (1) a paradigm of human behavior; (2) a taxonomy and related tables for human erroneous actions; (3) a set of data and correlations from the real working environment; and (4) a procedure for application of the methodology to different types of analysis, at different levels of complexity. The methodology has been developed to support possible applications of human factors to design and safety assessment of technological systems. The results of some applications are presented for prospective and retrospective studies in the domains of nuclear reactors and civil aviation.