Lecture 9-Stress

Crew Resources Management

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this lecture, students should be able to:

• Understand STRESS• Describe major causes of stress• Explain how to manage stress

Outlines

• Definition of stress• Types of Stress• Major Causes of Stress• Symptoms of Stress• Effect of stress• How to manage Stress

Lack of Situational AwarenessPoor Decision Making

Lack of CommunicationLack of Teamwork

StressFatigue

DistractedLack of resources, and knowledge

Major Causes of Human Error in Aircraft Accidents

Stress –major contribution to poor CRM

• In aviation, accidents almost always occur in a sequence of mistakes.

• Stress is one of the first contributing factors lead into the rest causing the effect.

• In order to maintain safety in aviation, stress must be managed to avoid an accident.

• This is where all of human factor studies and hard work can come into play.

• Depending on what particular job a person is performing in aviation, they must take steps to avoid undue stress.

• Stress can be avoided by taking steps to relieve other possible factors.

What is ??

Stress Definition

• Stress can be defined as physical and physiological tension caused by dealing with difficult situations.

• Mental, emotional or physical tension, strain or distress. (Webster, Dictionary)

Stress Definition

• Stress is sum of Biological reactions to our physical , mental & emotional condition tends to disturb “Body Natural Balance”

• Stress also defined as a state of highly unpleasant emotional caused by overload, fear, anxiety, and anger - all of which threaten both individual performance and teamwork.

How much STRESS in your life??

Cont.

• At first, it is essential to begins by making personal assessment of stress in all areas of our life.

• We may face:– Major stressors

• E.g. loss of income, bankrupt, death of a family member,

– Minor stressors• E.g. Overload in work

• These major and minor stressors have a cumulative effect which constitutes our total stress adaptation capability.

Stress Evaluation

• The more change you have, the more likely you are to suffer a decline in health.

• As a Rule of thumb, if you score over 20 checks mostly in the top half of the checklist, you have an 80 percent chance of a serious health change.

• If you have about 20 checks distributed over the checklist you have about a 50 percent chance ofIllness in the near future

Cont.

Is Stress Bad??

“Stress for Success” by Dr. Peter Hanson

• Stress not is not a bad thing. A small amount of it acts as a stimulus and improved your performance.

• A certain amount of stress is good because it keeps you alert and prevent complacency (too relax).

e.g. Racing driver, Olympic runner, Flight crew, etc.

Stress vs Performance• Slight stress is good but excessive stress

lead to depression and other bad effects

Stress

• Stress is a term used to describe the body’s nonspecific response to demands placed on it, whether these demands are pleasant or unpleasant in nature.

• The demands of the pilot can range from unexpected windshear encountered on a landing to a lost wallet.

Cont.

• Stress in a response to a set of circumstances that induces a change in a pilot’s current physiological and/or psychological patterns of functioning forcing the pilot to adapt to these changes.

• Stress is inevitable and necessary part of life that adds motivation to life and heightens a pilot response to meet any challenge.

• Performance will improve with the stress but will peak and then begin to degrade rapidly as stress levels exceed a pilot’s adaptive abilities to handle situation.

Performance degrade:Pilot adaptive abilities in handling situation<level

of stress

Pilot Stress

• In aviation, at all phases of flight, pilots are subjected to different amounts of stress; how they react when subjected to stress will ultimately make or break whether the outcome is a safe and successful flight.

• The image below depicts the different amount of workload and hence stress the pilot faces during the different phases of flight. Stress/ Workload is highest during the critical junctures of flight which are taking off and landing.

Effects of Stress

Effects of stress

As stress happen to the aircrew, it effects on the cognitive and interpersonal skills which form the basis of good CRM.– Poor decision making– Loss of situational awareness– Make errors of judgment– Become confused– Unable to cope with increase in workload– Absenteeism from work

• Absenteeism : the practice of regularly staying away from work or school without good reason.

• Can result in:– Distress & Anxiety– Oppression– Affliction

Body signals:• Headaches• Heartburn• Cramps• Fatigue

The effects of Stress

The types of Stress

Types of stress

ACUTEShort termCommon Small dose -

thrilling & exciting , keep you alert

Training Can help us to withstand acute stress better

CHRONIC Long term e.g. Death of some you

love, medical problem, family break up

Accumulate stress - day by day, year by year grind

If stress remain high & cannot be removed – various sickness sets in: long lasting problem

• Basically there are 2 types of Basically there are 2 types of STRESSSTRESS

Terribly Stressed?

What are the major causes of stress?

MAJOR CAUSES OF STRESS(3Ps stressors)

• Physical Stress- associate with ENVIRONMENT noise, lack of oxygen, poor visibility, poor lighting, vibration, temperature.

• Physiological stress- BODY condition e.g. fatigue, lack of physical fitness, illness

• Psychological Stress– SOCIAL or EMOTIONAL factors e.g. death in the family, divorce, sick child, also related to –work overloaded, financial problem

MAJOR CAUSES OF STRESS

Physical Stress

Noise• Noise levels in a typical cockpit are in the

range 75-80 dB. • Anything above this causes stress and makes

it difficult to concentrate and forces the pilot to have to strain to hear ATC instructions.

• Noise levels in the hangars are also high due to hangars situated near aircraft taking off and landing, making it difficult for maintenance personnel to focus and concentrate.

MAJOR CAUSES OF STRESS

Physical Stress• Temperature: High temperature

causing overheating of body. Low temperature build up causes the body to feel cold, weak and drowsy.

• Poor visibility due to heavy fog• Poor Lightings make it difficult to

read technical data and manuals while working on the aircraft.

• In this situation , we will feel not comfortable and stress will come out.

MAJOR CAUSES OF STRESSPhysiological Stressors• Not having proper meals also result in not

having enough energy and induces symptoms like headache and shaking.

• Lack of sleep; Fatigued, the pilot is unable to maintain performance standards for long periods as he struggling to stay awake.

• Conflicting Shift Schedules affect the body's cycle and lead to a degradation of performance.

• Working long hours without any break especially at busy airports when handling multiple aircraft departing and arriving on intersecting and parallel runways.

• Flying when unwell resulting in the body using more energy fighting the illness and hence less energy to perform vital tasks.

MAJOR CAUSES OF STRESS

Psychological Stressors• Financial problems such as impending

bankruptcy and loans and to pay.• Marital problems due to divorce or

strained relationships due to persistent quarreling.

• Interpersonal problems with superiors and colleagues due to miscommunication or perceived competition and backstabbing.

Signs of stress

• Physiological symptoms - such as sweating, dryness of the mouth.

• Health effects - such as nausea, headaches, sleep problems, diarrhoea, ulcers.

• Mental effects - such as poor concentration, indecision, forgetfulness, anxiety, irritability, depression, moodiness.

• Behavioural symptoms - such as shaking, nervous laughter, taking longer over tasks, excessive drinking

How to Manage Stress

Life-Stress Management

1. Become knowledgeable about stress.(e.g. effect of stress, sign of stress, causes of

stress etc.)2. Take a systematic approach to problem

solving3. Develop a life style that will avoid the effects

of stress4. Establish and maintain a strong support

network.5. Relaxation techniques; Careful regulation of

sleep diet and physical exercise;

Flight Stress Management

• Good flight stress management begins with good life stress management.

• Flight stress management checklist:1. Avoid distraction

• Avoid situations that distract us from flying the aircraft.2. Reduce workload

• Reduce our workload to reduce stress levels. This will create a proper environment in which to make good decisions.

3. Be calm• If emergency does occur, be calm. Think for a moment,

find the alternatives, then act.4. Maintain proficiency

• Proficiency build confidence. Familiarize ourselves thoroughly with the aircraft, its systems, and emergency procedures.

5. Know and respect our personal limit

Stress Managements

• If you don’t manage stress, it will manage YOU!

• STOP burning up emotional energy

• LOOK rationally at the problem• LISTEN to your rational not

emotional mind • ACT once you have a plan, do it

!

Stress Managements

• Be sure the solution starts with “I”• Be realistic and practical.• TAKE a BREAK !!• Talk to someone who is not emotionally

involved with the problem.

• Don’t expect miracles......just keep trying.

STRESS - SUMMARY

• Stress is Inevitable• 2 Types – Acute & Chronic• Stress Effects our Physical & Mental

health• Stress affects our situation

awareness and our decision making• We need to effectively cope with

stress to be efficient• Training enhances our ability to

cope-up with stress• Manage stress for health