ABSTRACT
The issue of cognitive biases is increasingly being addressed in relation to process safety (OGP 460, 2012; OGP 2012p, 2013). The importance of process safety, particularly in the oil and gas industry, was highlighted by the recent tragedy of the Macondo blowout (2010; Chief Counsel, 2011), as well as previous incidents such as the Texas City Refinery (2005; Hopkins, 2009), Longford Refinery (1998; Hopkins, 2000), Petrobras semi-submersible rig (2001; ANC/DPC 2001) and Piper Alpha oil platform (1988; Cullen, 1990). Improved understanding of human factors, and especially the impact of cognitive biases affecting real-time decision making, is a topic which has the potential to reduce human error, and minimise the possibility of incidents.
