ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book shows how the reliability is created in the ways in which humans work within their systems, positively taking into account the fallibility of those systems. It comprises two contributions that analyze how humans accomplish reliable performance most of the time despite system vulnerabilities: disturbances, high degrees of uncertainty and unpredictable events. The book takes for granted the importance of developing holistic ways of understanding everyday human work in complex environments. It provides strong empirical evidence for the argument that reliable performance occurs in complex environments despite often conflicting constraints imposed by divergent organizational goals with respect to safety, availability, profitability and regularity. The book analyzes the kinds of adaptive strategies, improvisations, negotiations, conflict between logics, and compromises enacted in order to repair disturbances and achieve performative closure.
