Dr. Steve Kass
Department of Psychology
University of West Florida

What is Human Factors?
 The discovery and application of information about human behavior, abilities, and other characteristics to the design of tools, machines, systems, tasks, jobs, and environments for productive, safe, comfortable, and effective human use.

Human Factors Psychology and
Related Disciplines
 Ergonomics
 Human Factors Engineering
 Engineering Psychology
 Human-Machine Interaction
 Cognitive Engineering
 Industrial/Organizational Psychology

Scope of Human Factors

Human Factors Research
Journals
• Human Factors
• Proceedings of Human Factors and Ergonomics
Society Annual Conference
• Proceedings of Interservice/Industry Training
Systems and Education Conference
• Ergonomics
• Applied Ergonomics
• Human Factors and Aerospace Safety
• The International Journal of Aviation Psychology
• Human Performance
• Transportation Research
• IEEE

History of Human Factors
 Emerged during World War II
– Need for people to effectively operate sophisticated military systems
– Early emphasis was on productivity and physiology
 After WWII the discipline continued to grow to meet the challenge of non-military problems
– Emphasis shifted to include other objectives, such as safer and healthier working environments and improvements in the quality of working life
– HF boosted by space program, computers, home technology

Role of Human Factors
 User-Centered Design
– Systems designed to fit people (not vice-versa).
– Reduces training time.
– Minimizes human error.
– Improves comfort, safety, and productivity.

Where do Human Factors
Professionals Work?
 Colleges and Universities
 Military Research Facilities and Settings
 IBM
 Motorola
 American Airlines
 Hewlett-Packard
 Kodak
 Yahoo!
 Gateway

Approaches for Problem-Solving
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Equipment Design – change physical equipment
Task Design – change how task is accomplished
Environmental Design – change features of the work environment such as temperature, lighting, sound
Training – change worker behavior by providing skills and teaching procedures
Selection – recognizes individual differences in ability to accomplish work

Human Factors Activities
 Accident Investigation/Expert Witness
 Simulation, Virtual Reality, & Training
 Occupational/Public Health & Safety
 Consumer Products
 Basic & Applied Research

Accident Investigation
1999 London Train Accident
February 2001, U.S. sub accidentally sinks fishing boat

Submarine Training Simulators

Virtual Reality

Occupational Safety

Occupational Safety

Consumer Products Ergonomics
No Channel Surfing

Research
Tactile Situation Awareness Suit

Design Considerations
 Affordances
 User Stereotypes/Expectancies
 Stimulus-Response Compatibility
 Cognitive Ability
 Physical Ability
 Anthropometry
 Sensation & Perceptual Capabilities
 User Preferences
 Environment

Affordances
Bathroom Blunder
Problem: Look & placement afford behaviors other than those intended

User Stereotypes/Expectancies
Butterfly Ballot-Palm Beach County, FL
Problem: Violates expectations of reading order & experience

User Stereotypes/Expectancies
The Sound of Music
Problem: Lack of spatial proximity

Stimulus-Response Compatibility
Why Isn’t My Food Getting Hot?
Problem: Lack of natural mapping from controls to burners

Stimulus-Response Compatibility
Suggested Solution

Stimulus Response Compatibility
Purposely intended to slow performance

Cognitive Ability

Cognitive Ability
Problem: Decision making under time stress

Physical Abilities
Three Cosmonauts aboard Soyuz 11 that died in 1971

Anthropometry
• Design for Average
• Design for Extreme
• Design for Adjustability

Sensation & Perceptual Capabilities
Red Light, Green Light, Stop!
Visual Complexity

Perceptual Illusions

User Preferences
The Beaten Path

Environment
• G-forces/Weightlessness
• Heat/Cold
• Lighting
• Noise/Vibration
• Stress
• Chemicals

Human Factors Application
This innovative office design improves productivity and efficiency by 4.35%