Fundamentals of systems ergonomics.
Ergonomics/human factors is, above anything else, a systems discipline applying a systems philosophy and systems approaches. Many things are labeled as "systems X" in today's world, and this paper specifies just what attributes and notions define ergonomics/human factors in systems terms. These are concern for context, acknowledgement of interactions and complexity, a holistic approach, recognition of emergence and embedding of the professional effort involved within organization systems. These five notions are illustrated with examples from a large body of work on rail human factors.
Human Factors Research Group, Faculty of Engineering, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK.
John R
JR
Wilson
D006804:Ergonomics; D006801:Humans; D008328:Man-Machine Systems; D011890:Railroads; D013598:Systems Theory