ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book describes the methods which can be used to support all six domains. These are Manpower, Personnel, Training, Human Factors (HF) Engineering, System Safety and Health Hazards. HF problems are troublesome because they do not reside exclusively within the purview of engineering; nor are they the exclusive domain of human scientists. HF problems reside at the interface of both, and HF methods are the means by which they can be tackled. HF problems therefore have the very real capability to reduce overall system performance to a level that is substantially less effective than was originally intended. HF methods are useful in the scientist-practitioner model because of the structure and potential for repeatability that they offer. The initial literature review was based upon a survey of standard ergonomics textbooks, relevant scientific journals and existing HF method reviews.
