ABSTRACT
A paradigm is a world view underlying the theories and methodology of a particular scientific discipline; in our case, ergonomics. The ability to engage in new thinking and new paradigms is a critical aspect for the lifeblood of any discipline. Contributions to this New Paradigms in Ergonomics special issue have been grouped into three themes: new paradigms in theories and methods; new paradigms in practice; and new paradigms in domains and values. These themes take the reader on a journey through underlying theories, news ways to apply those theories, emerging domains in which ergonomics is expected to play a greater role and to what ultimate ends. P. M. Salmon et al. explore how well our current methodological toolkit can cope with modern day problems by focusing on five key areas within the ergonomics paradigm of systems thinking: normal performance as a cause of accidents, accident prediction, system migration, systems concepts and ergonomics in design.
