Human factors in maritime transportation and mental workload analyses for seafarers in bridge simulation

Abstract

Since the United States Coast Guard (USCG) reported in 1993 that human factors had essentially caused approximately 80% of maritime accidents and near misses, there has been an overwhelming understanding that human factors play a significant role in a considerable number of incidents or catastrophes by triggering chain events. The work has initially documented a literature review underlining human factors in maritime accidents, mental workload study and functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) technique to imply how it can be studied for human factors in maritime transportation. It investigates how different risk factors generate an impact on different types of human-related maritime transportation accidents using a data-driven approach, and how mental workload influences neurophysiological activation and decision- making of seafarers by conducting an experimental study in bridge simulation. The results of the developed models formalise the causal interdependencies between the risk factors with human factors perspectives and highlight the implications through scenario analyses. On the other hand, the findings of the fNIRS experimental study revealed the role of the prefrontal cortex and functional connectivity in watchkeeping and collision avoidance during maritime operations. It is concluded that the understanding of risk factors contributing to human errors will help reduce the risk level or eliminate the potential hazards of ships, and provide the clue for accident investigation and generate insights for accident prevention. Also, the experimental study supports fNIRS as a valuable neuroimaging technique in realistic situations. It examines the mental workload and functional connectivity of seafarers, which helps generate insights for human performance and seafarers’ training. Finally, the inclusion of a broader range of human factors and experimental methods shows promise by associating neurophysiological experiment in the maritime section.