Book Review: Decision Making in Aviation

Decision Making in Aviation contains 24 reprints spanning 1981 to 2014 from leading journals and books covering a range of topics from the field of aeronautical decision making (ADM), making it a very broad but well-done review. In each of the book’s five sections, there is no clear bias as to how the editors want readers to see this field of study. A perfect example is the first section, in which a series of papers explores classical decision making (e.g., controlled experimental tasks that often assume there is an optimal decision) and naturalistic decision making (e.g., studies of operators in their actual environment where there is not always an optimal solution, but there is at least a satisfactory solution). These selections delineate the strengths and weaknesses of each approach, leaving readers to decide about the applicability of each for their own research.

The largest portion of the volume, encompassing roughly 45% of the book, is an excellent base for readers who are unfamiliar with the area of decision making in aviation. Other papers drill down into more specific fields of ADM and range from Air Force command-and-control issues to discussions of the differences between individuals and teams and the dynamics that come into play with decision making. The final chapter of this section begins with a tragic example of an aircraft mishap in which neither pilot nor copilot made a correct decision (i.e., not to take off in a snowstorm). The author goes on to present not only ways researchers have tried to understand decision making but also various models (e.g., the lens model by Brunswik) and how these models can be applied to understand individual and team dynamics.

The second section of the book describes techniques for ADM training, including tools such as decision-making mnemonics for improving performance and critical reviews of how well each of these approaches attempts to train decision making to improve the performance of aircrew. Next, a series of papers on automation and the flight deck delve into the interplay between pilot(s) and automation, and the beneficial and detrimental effects of these relationships. The book’s fourth section, on distributed decision making, reviews teaming aspects of decision making, ranging from ADM issues for flight deck teams to future issues of automation in air traffic management, and extends ADM to teams separated by location (e.g., issues associated with the distributed nature of pilots and air traffic control).

The volume concludes with an interesting mix of papers that explore “other” factors in ADM, such as differences in aircrew expertise, stress, and issues of incentives in a work environment. This book covers a wide range of ADM issues while not taking sides and overbiasing any single approach but, rather, giving several viewpoints and allowing readers to decide which approach best fits their theoretical opinions. This makes it a nice volume for the newcomer to the field of ADM. As well, it might prod those who may be set in their ways, forcing them to look at the issues from a different perspective, and encourages them to look at their own research in a more critical light.