title: An Investigation of Operational Decision Making in Situ: Incident Command in the U.K. Fire and Rescue Service.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to better understand the nature of decision making at operational incidents in order to inform operational guidance and training.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Normative models of decision making have been adopted in the guidance and training for emergency services. In these models, it is assumed that decision makers assess the current situation, formulate plans, and then execute the plans. However, our understanding of how decision making unfolds at operational incidents remains limited.
  
  
  METHODS
  Incident commanders, attending 33 incidents across six U.K. Fire and Rescue Services, were fitted with helmet-mounted cameras, and the resulting video footage was later independently coded and used to prompt participants to provide a running commentary concerning their decisions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The analysis revealed that assessment of the operational situation was most often followed by plan execution rather than plan formulation, and there was little evidence of prospection about the potential consequences of actions. This pattern of results was consistent across different types of incident, characterized by level of risk and time pressure, but was affected by the operational experience of the participants.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Decision making did not follow the sequence of phases assumed by normative models and conveyed in current operational guidance but instead was influenced by both reflective and reflexive processes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results have clear implications for understanding operational decision making as it occurs in situ and suggest a need for future guidance and training to acknowledge the role of reflexive processes.
authors: Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom.
authors: Sabrina R
authors: SR
authors: Cohen-Hatton
authors: London Fire Brigade, London, United Kingdom.
authors: Philip C
authors: PC
authors: Butler
authors: Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom Honey@cardiff.ac.uk.
authors: Robert C
authors: RC
authors: Honey
mesh_terms: D003657:Decision Making; D004630:Emergencies; D004632:Emergency Medical Services; D005260:Female; D061388:Firefighters; D005390:Fires; D006801:Humans; D007857:Leadership; D008297:Male; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D006113:United Kingdom; D014741:Video Recording
keywords: dynamic decision making; emergency services; operational models