Aviation Social Science: Research Methods in Practice Studies in Aviation Psychology and Human Factors Series

This book is a guide that addressees social science research issues within the aviation industry. Studies involving human factors, personality, training systems evaluation, decision-making, crew resource management and situation awareness are used to illustrate not only the process, but also the outcomes that can emerge from social science research. The book describes the principles involved in conceptualising a research problem, obtaining management support, developing an appropriate timeframe, obtaining ethics approval and collecting and managing data. It also provides useful guidelines concerning the publication of research in magazines, academic journals and conference presentations. The topics are illustrated with aviation examples and the principles are deliberately broad. This book will be a useful guide for both novice and experienced researchers, especially pilots, air traffic controllers, maintenance personnel, aviation management, aviation researchers, safety personnel and undergraduate and postgraduate university students.

Contents: Introduction; Identifying a research problem in Aviation; Social science research strategies in Aviation; Ethics and research; Writing a research proposal; Conducting social science research in Aviation; Introduction to quantitative data analysis; Inferential statistics for Aviation research; Qualitative data analysis; Publishing research; Conclusion; Glossary; References; Index.

Mark W. Wiggins, Catherine Stevens