Training Interventions for Managing Startle During Unexpected Critical Events

1. Training Interventions for Managing Startle During Unexpected Critical Events Wayne Martin Griffith University Aerospace Safety Centre, Brisbane, Australia Griffith Aerospace Safety Centre

2. Griffith Aerospace Safety Centre

3. Fear-potentiated Startle A startle which has been enhanced by perceived or actual threat Griffith Aerospace Safety Centre

4. Self-Efficacy ‘The belief in one’s capabilities to organise and execute the sources of action required to manage prospective situations’ Bandura (1986) Griffith Aerospace Safety Centre

5. The Curse of Ubiquitous Normalcy The ubiquitous reliability of the modern aircraft has done tremendous things for airline safety. One of the by-products of this tremendous reliability however, is a semi-realistic expectation amongst pilots that things will very rarely ever go wrong. A lack of expectation can lead to a heightened startle and acute stress response when something does go wrong.

6. Some recent examples of Unexpected Events Turkish Airlines – Amsterdam 2009 Colgan Air – Buffalo 2009 Air France 447 – Atlantic Ocean 2009 Pinnacle Airlines - Missouri, 2004 Griffith Aerospace Safety Centre

7. Brain Mechanisms Associated With Startle Griffith Aerospace Safety Centre

8. The Acute Stress Reaction Amygdala Hypothalamus Activates sympathetic nervous system Activates the adrenal-cortical system by releasing CRF Activates adrenal medulla Pituitary Gland secretes hormone ACTH (Fight or Flight) Impulses activate glands and smooth muscles ACTH arrives at the adrenal cortex and releases approx. 30 hormones Releases norepinephrine Releases epinephrine bloodstream Neural activity combines with hormones in the bloodstream to constitute fight-or-flight response

9. The Cognitive Effects of Startle • Research has shown significant impairment in information processing for up to 30 seconds • Information processing tasks such as attention, perception, situational awareness, problem solving and decision making can be markedly impacted. • Communication is often disorganised and incoherent for some time. • Psychomotor impairment often occurs but generally lasts for only 5-10 seconds.

10. Mitigating Startle • Mitigation of startle Effects comes through two efforts: • Better Prevention of critical events • Improving Recovery training Griffith Aerospace Safety Centre

11. Mitigating Startle • Prevention Strategies • Improved training and attention to: • situational awareness skill sets; and • pilot monitoring skills.

12. Situational Awareness Maintaining an accurate mental picture requires a number of individual skills working in concert. These skills include: • Effective Communications • Planning • Storage and Retrieval of Knowledge • Temporal Awareness • Vigilance • Workload Assignment and Management • Reviewing and Modifying Plans • Inquiry

13. Mitigating Startle • Pilot monitoring involves the comparison of environmental cues to a master mental schema which is continuously updated for local variations on the day. • A framework of SOP’s form expectations which are reinforced through repetition. • On any given day this continuously updated ‘mental model’ of what should happen is compared by both Pilots to actual conditions, and disparities are either noticed and addressed, noticed and ignored, or not noticed.

14. Mitigating Startle • Prevention Strategies • Improved training and attention to situational awareness skill sets, and particularly pilot monitoring skills • Developing greater expectation and efficacy for managing unexpected critical events

15. Mitigating Startle • Prevention Strategies • Improved training and attention to situational awareness skill sets, and particularly pilot monitoring skills • Developing greater expectation and efficacy for managing unexpected critical events • Greater awareness of startle effects.

16. Mitigating Startle • Prevention Strategies • Improved training and attention to situational awareness skill sets, and particularly pilot monitoring skills • Developing greater expectation and efficacy for managing unexpected critical events • Greater awareness of startle effects. • Encouraging Pilots to have personal strategies for managing unexpected critical events

17. Mitigating Startle • Recovery • More focus on evidence based training

18. Mitigating Startle • Recovery • More focus on evidence based training • Improved training on recognition and management of undesired aircraft states

19. Mitigating Startle • Recovery • More focus on evidence based training • Improved training on recognition and management of undesired aircraft states • Exposure to unexpected critical events during training.

20. Summary When pilots are suddenly confronted with an unexpected critical event, they often become startled. Startle has the ability to disrupt cognitive processes for up to 30 seconds, particularly where it is experienced in conditions of real threat. This time may be critical in the recovery or decision making process. Adopting holistic training interventions for managing startle will have other benefits including improved threat and error management, and improved prevention of, and recovery from, undesired aircraft states.

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