Understanding HP 1-17
Principle 5: People’s performance is influenced by working with other people, technology, and the environment.
Human performance can be positively or negatively affected by interacting with other people and with all elements
of the socio-technical system. We learn and behave within the constructs of the culture we are brought up in and in
which we live. Group and organizational cultures provide the context in which people work together. Such cultures
reflect assumptions, often unstated, about the nature of the world. These assumptions, in turn, determine how
people perceive the world around them, and how they respond to it. The group and the organization establish
expectations for “the way things are done around here”. The individual and the group can be influenced by the
environment in which they work, such as by physical location, weather conditions or national culture. They are then
influenced by the equipment and technology they are provided with. Even when provided with the proper
equipment, procedures, guidance and training, people’s performance is influenced by interactions with others, and
everything around them, in ways that can vary from the expected result.
When people work together as a group, they can do more collectively than any individual can do alone. In the same
way that some physical capabilities of the group are greater than the individual capabilities of any group member
(e.g., the group can lift a heavier weight than a single person can), the group’s limitations may also be greater than
the limitations of any individual group member. For example, the cognitive bias of “group think” occurs when
people’s desire for group consensus, harmony, or conformity results in a dysfunctional decision. Individuals in the
group may make incorrect assumptions about others’ thoughts, values, needs and desires, as well as about those of
the group as a whole. At the same time, groups can also help individuals make better decisions, and improve
performance by compensating
for individuals’ limitations, and
encouraging and supporting
appropriate behaviour and
optimal performance.
In the aviation system, there
are multiple different groups
within which people operate.
These groups can be within an
individual organization, across
multiple organizations that work closely together, or based on job type. Individuals may be heavily dependent on
the actions and behaviours of other people from another group, who may be working under different constraints
and goals.
Similar to the way their performance is influenced by working with other people, people’s performance is also
influenced by the technology used and by the environment in which they perform. Well-designed tools allow people
to improve their performance, whereas poorly designed or missing tools force people to improvise and might lead
to reduced performance. And new or modified tools, even when well-designed, will result in changes to how people
perform their tasks and may even change their role and their responsibilities. For example, the introduction of
automation can change the role of the human operator from that of an initiator and direct manipulator to that of a
reacting supervisor.
Environmental conditions such as lighting, temperature, and space also influence people’s performance. People
work best with adequate lighting, comfortable temperature and sufficient space to perform their tasks. When such
optimal conditions do not exist, people again have to improvise, and their performance might not be as intended.