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At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2000

Predictors of Behavior and Performance in Extreme Environments: The Antarctic Space Analogue Program

To determine which, if any, characteristics should be incorporated into a select-in approach to screening personnel for long-duration spaceflight, we examined the influence of crewmember social/ demographic characteristics, personality traits, interpersonal needs, and characteristics of station physical environments on performance measures in 657 American men who spent an austral winter in Antarctica between 1963 and 1974. During screening, subjects completed a Personal History Questionnaire which obtained information on social and demographic characteristics, the Deep Freeze Opinion Survey which assessed 5 different personality traits, and the Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation-Behavior (FIRO-B) Scale which measured 6 dimensions of interpersonal needs. Station environment included measures of crew size and severity of physical environment. Performance was assessed on the basis of combined peer-supervisor evaluations of overall performance, peer nominations of fellow crewmembers who made ideal winter-over candidates, and self-reported depressive symptoms. Social/demographic characteristics, personality traits, interpersonal needs, and characteristics of station environments collectively accounted for 9-17% of the variance in performance measures. The following characteristics were significant independent predictors of more than one performance measure: military service, low levels of neuroticism, extraversion and conscientiousness, and a low desire for affection from others. These results represent an important first step in the development of select-in criteria for personnel on long-duration missions in space and other extreme environments. These criteria must take into consideration the characteristics of the environment and the limitations they place on meeting needs for interpersonal relations and task performance, as well as the characteristics of the individuals and groups who live and work in these environments.

Palinkas, Lawrence A.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Human and team performance in extreme environments: Antarctica

Analogous experience is often instructive when attempting to understand human behavior in extreme environments. The current paper refers to the experiences of polar explorers and remote duty personnel to help identify the factors that influence individual and team performance when small groups are isolated and confined for long durations. The principal factors discussed include organizational structure, intracrew communications, interpersonal relations, leadership style, personnel selection, and training. Behavioral implications also are addressed for the design of procedures and equipment to facilitate sustained individual and group performance under conditions of isolation and confinement. To be consistent with the theme of the symposium, this paper emphasizes the crew requirements for an international expedition to Mars.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

A Process Model of Interpersonal Relationship Formation in Isolated and Confined Environments

Future space crews will face several challenges such as living and working in a confined environment, isolated from others. These circumstances increase the importance of interpersonal compatibility, teamwork, and team performance. The interpersonal compatibility of space crews has been and continues to be of interest to both NASA and the Institute of Biomedical Problems (IBMP), whose research informs operations for Roscosmos. In NASA-sponsored research, interpersonal compatibility has been examined in terms of how the combination of team members’ personality traits, values, and demographics shape team member relationships and team performance overtime. IBMP-sponsored research mostly has moved away from trait-based approaches toward an idiographic (in-depth, heavily descriptive) approach to researching crew interpersonal relations. This research uses software such as Personal Self-Perception and Attitudes (PSPA), network approaches to team member relations, and content analysis of interactions to assess interpersonal compatibility, and infer states and team dynamics. Our research program integrated these ideas. Our primary research aim was to develop and empirically test a process model of interpersonal relationship formation in isolated and confinement environments. We created a model, collected data from teams in an isolated and confined environment, and applied a novel analytical strategy that combines trait, state, and interaction data (i.e., relational events). We focused specifically on the formation of strained relationships in isolation and confinement—or with whom fellow crewmembers find it difficult to work.

S T Bell↗
NASA NTRS1987

Human performance in aerospace environments: The search for psychological determinants

A program of research into the psychological determinants of individual and crew performance in aerospace environments is described. Constellations of personality factors influencing behavior in demanding environments are discussed. Relationships between attitudes and performance and attitudes and personality are also reported. The efficacy of training in interpersonal relations as a means of changing attitudes and behavior is explored along with the influence of personality on attitude change processes. Finally, approaches to measuring group behavior in aerospace settings are described.

Helmreich, Robert L.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Psychophysiology in microgravity and the role of exercise

The Space Transportation-Shuttle (STS) Program has greatly expanded our capabilities in space by allowing for missions to be flown more frequently, less expensively, and to encompass a greater range of goals than ever before. However, the scope of the United State's role and involvement in space is currently at the edge of a new and exciting era. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has plans for placing an orbiting space station (Space Station Freedom) into operation before the year 2000. Space Station Freedom promises to redefine the extent of our involvement in space even further than the STS program. Space Station crewmembers will be expected to spend extended periods of time (approximately 30 to 180 days) in space exposed to an extremely diverse and adverse environment (e.g., the major adversity being the chronic microgravity condition). Consequently, the detrimental effects of exposure to the microgravity environment is of primary importance to the biomedical community responsible for the health and well-being of the crewmembers. Space flight and microgravity exposure present a unique set of stressors for the crewmember; weightlessness, danger, isolation/confinement, irregular work-rest cycles, separation from family/friends, and mission/ground crew interrelationships. A great deal is beginning to be known about the physiological changes associated with microgravity exposure, however, limited objective psychological findings exist. Examination of this latter area will become of critical concern as NASA prepares to place crewmembers on the longer space missions that will be required on Space Station Freedom. Psychological factors, such as interpersonal relations will become increasingly important issues, especially as crews become more heterogeneous in the way of experience, professional background, and assigned duties. In an attempt to minimize the detrimental physiological effects of prolonged space flight and microgravity exposure, the United States and Russian space agencies have taken steps to implement various countermeasure programs. One of the principle countermeasures used by both nations is exercise during space flight. The purpose is to present a brief overview of the major research findings examining the psychophysiological changes associated with microgravity exposure, and to address the potential role of exercise as a countermeasure in affecting these psychophysiological changes.

Shaw, J. M.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Marooned on Mars: Mind-Spinning Books for Software Engineers

Dragonfly - NASA and the Crisis Aboard MIR (New York: HarperCollins Publishers), the story of the Russian-American misadventures on MIR. An expose with almost embarrassing detail about the inner-workings of Johnson Space Center in Houston, this book is best read with the JSC organization chart in hand. Here's the real world of engineering and life in extreme environments. It makes most other accounts of "requirements analysis" appear glib and simplistic. The book vividly portrays the sometimes harrowing experiences of the American astronauts in the web of Russian interpersonal relations and literally in the web of MIR's wiring. Burrough's exposition reveals how handling bureaucratic procedures and bulky facilities is as much a matter of moxie and goodwill as technical capability. Lessons from MIR showed NASA that getting to Mars required a different view of knowledge and improvisation-long-duration missions are not at all like the scripted and pre-engineered flights of Apollo or the Space Shuttle.

Clancey, William J.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Psychosocial value of space simulation for extended spaceflight

There have been over 60 studies of Earth-bound activities that can be viewed as simulations of manned spaceflight. These analogs have involved Antarctic and Arctic expeditions, submarines and submersible simulators, land-based simulators, and hypodynamia environments. None of these analogs has accounted for all the variables related to extended spaceflight (e.g., microgravity, long-duration, heterogeneous crews), and some of the stimulation conditions have been found to be more representative of space conditions than others. A number of psychosocial factors have emerged from the simulation literature that correspond to important issues that have been reported from space. Psychological factors include sleep disorders, alterations in time sense, transcendent experiences, demographic issues, career motivation, homesickness, and increased perceptual sensitivities. Psychiatric factors include anxiety, depression, psychosis, psychosomatic symptoms, emotional reactions related to mission stage, asthenia, and postflight personality, and marital problems. Finally, interpersonal factors include tension resulting from crew heterogeneity, decreased cohesion over time, need for privacy, and issues involving leadership roles and lines of authority. Since future space missions will usually involve heterogeneous crews working on complicated objectives over long periods of time, these features require further study. Socio-cultural factors affecting confined crews (e.g., language and dialect, cultural differences, gender biases) should be explored in order to minimize tension and sustain performance. Career motivation also needs to be examined for the purpose of improving crew cohesion and preventing subgrouping, scapegoating, and territorial behavior. Periods of monotony and reduced activity should be addressed in order to maintain morale, provide meaningful use of leisure time, and prevent negative consequences of low stimulation, such as asthenia and crew member withdrawal. Leadership roles and lines of authority need to be studied further to understand the factors leading to status leveling, leadership competition, and role confusion. Finally, the relationship between crews and ground personnel should be characterized in order to minimize the displacement of anger and tension to the outside, to counter the effects of inter-group miscommunications, and to develop support strategies that can help to counter in-group/out-group conflicts. Ground-based space simulations still have a role to play in terms of understanding the impact of these factors and ways of dealing with them. In particular, issues involving language, cultural differences, gender biases, career motivation, monotonous conditions, use of free time, leadership, lines of authority, and the relationship between crews and outside monitoring personnel need to be further characterized and examined under controlled conditions. Until such time as these factors can be studied directly in space, simulations provide an opportunity to learn more about these psychosocial issues and to plan ways of minimizing their negative consequences during actual space missions.

NASA Discipline Number 00-00↗
NASA NTRS2002

Lessons learned from Shuttle/Mir: psychosocial countermeasures

BACKGROUND: During future long-duration space missions, countermeasures need to be developed to deal with psychosocial issues that might impact negatively on crewmember performance and well-being. METHODS: In our recently completed NASA-funded study of 5 U.S. astronauts, 8 Russian cosmonauts, and 42 U.S. and 16 Russian mission control personnel who participated in the Shuttle/Mir program, we evaluated a number of important psychosocial issues such as group tension, cohesion, leadership role, and the displacement of negative emotions from crewmembers to people in mission control and from mission control personnel to management. RESULTS: Based on our findings, which are reviewed, a number of psychosocial countermeasures are suggested to help ameliorate the negative impact of potential psychosocial problems during future manned space missions. CONCLUSIONS: Crewmembers should be selected not only to rule out psychopathology but also to select-in for group compatibility and facility in a common language. Training should include briefings and team building related to a number of psychosocial issues and should involve both crewmembers and mission control personnel. During the mission, both experts on the ground and the crewmembers themselves should be alert to potential interpersonal problems, including the displacement of negative emotions from the crew to the ground. Supportive activities should consist of both individual and interpersonal strategies, including an awareness of changing leisure time needs. Finally, attention should be given to postmission readjustment and to supporting the families on Earth.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS1996

Phase-shifting human circadian rhythms: influence of sleep timing, social contact and light exposure

1. Both the timing of behavioural events (activity, sleep and social interactions) and the environmental light-dark cycle have been reported to contribute to entrainment of human circadian rhythms to the 24 h day. Yet, the relative contribution of those putative behavioural synchronizers to that of light exposure remains unclear. 2. To investigate this, we inverted the schedule of rest, sedentary activity and social contact of thirty-two young men either with or without exposure to bright light. 3. On this inverted schedule, the endogenous component of the core temperature rhythm of subjects who were exposed to bright light showed a significant phase shift, demonstrating that they were adapting to the new schedule. In contrast, the core temperature rhythm of subjects who were not exposed to bright light moved on average 0.2 h later per day and after 10 days had not significantly adapted to the new schedule. 4. The direction of phase shift in the groups exposed to bright light was dependent on the time of bright light exposure, while control subjects drifted to a later hour regardless of the timing of their schedule of sleep timing, social contact and meals. 5. These results support the concept that the light-dark cycle is the most important synchronizer of the human circadian system. They suggest that inversion of the sleep-wake, rest-activity and social contact cycles provides relatively minimal drive for resetting the human circadian pacemaker. 6. These data indicate that interventions designed to phase shift human circadian rhythms for adjustment to time zone changes or altered work schedules should focus on properly timed light exposure.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS2003

Social roles and the evolution of networks in extreme and isolated environments

This article reports on the evolution of network structure as it relates to formal and informal social roles in well-bounded, isolated groups. Research was conducted at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. Data were collected on crewmembers' networks of social interaction over each of three winter-over periods, when the station is completely isolated. In addition, data were collected on the informal roles played by crewmembers (e.g., instrumental leadership, expressive leadership). The study found that globally coherent networks in winter-over groups were associated with group consensus on the presence of critically important informal social roles (e.g., expressive leadership) where global coherence is the extent to which a network forms a single group composed of a unitary core and periphery as opposed to being factionalized into two or more subgroups. Conversely, the evolution of multiple subgroups was associated with the absence of consensus on critical informal social roles, above all the critically important role of instrumental leader.

NASA Program Biomedical Research and Countermeasur↗
NASA NTRS2003

The psychology of isolated and confined environments. Understanding human behavior in Antarctica

Psychosocial adaptation to isolated and confined environments exhibits 4 distinct characteristics. First, it is seasonal: Variations in mood are associated with the altered diurnal cycle and psychological segmentation of the mission. Second, it is situational: Concurrent measures of personality, interpersonal needs, and coping styles are better predictors of mood and performance than are predeployment measures. Third, it is social: Members of expeditions with low social coherence report significantly more depression, anxiety, and anger than individuals belonging to expeditions with high social coherence. Fourth, it is salutogenic: Depressed mood is inversely associated with the severity of the physical environment of the station, and the winter-over experience is associated with reduced subsequent rates of hospital admissions, suggesting positive benefits for individuals seeking challenging experiences.

NASA Program Biomedical Research and Countermeasur↗
NASA NTRS2003

Intercultural crew issues in long-duration spaceflight

Before long-duration flights with international crews can be safely undertaken, potential interpersonal difficulties will need to be addressed. Crew performance breakdown has been recognized by the American Institute of Medicine, in scientific literature, and in popular culture. However, few studies of human interaction and performance in confined, isolated environments exist, and the data pertaining to those studies are mostly anecdotal. Many incidents involving crew interpersonal dynamics, those among flight crews, as well as between flight crews and ground controllers, are reported only in non-peer reviewed books and newspapers. Consequently, due to this lack of concrete knowledge, the selection of astronauts and cosmonauts has focused on individual rather than group selection. Additional selection criteria such as interpersonal and communication competence, along with intercultural training, will have a decisive impact on future mission success. Furthermore, industrial psychological research has demonstrated the ability to select a group based on compatibility. With all this in mind, it is essential to conduct further research on heterogeneous, multi-national crews including selection and training for long-duration space missions.

long duration↗
NASA NTRS2003

Group dynamics and catecholamines during long-duration confinement in an isolated environment

INTRODUCTION: The objectives of this study were to investigate possible relationships between catecholamine excretion and long-duration confinement in an isolated environment. METHODS: Stays of long duration were made by Group I (n = 4, all Russian, weeks 1-34), Group II (n = 4, mixed nationality, weeks 3-18), and Group III (n = 4, mixed nationality, weeks 22-38); other groups joined the residents for 1-wk intervals at weeks #13, #19, and #33. Data were collected from Groups I and III. RESULTS: In both Group I and Group III, the daily epinephrine excretion was significantly elevated during and after confinement compared with the pre-isolation baseline (p < 0.05), but remained mostly within normal limits during the experiment. During isolation, epinephrine excretion was significantly higher, compared with other weeks in isolation, during weeks #19 and #27 for Group I, and during week #30 for Group III. In both Group I and Group II, norepinephrine excretion increased significantly during and after isolation (p < 0.05) and was above the normal range. The daily norepinephrine excretion was significantly higher (p < 0.05) in Group I during weeks #12, #13, and #27, and during week #30 for Group III. DISCUSSION: Epinephrine excretion generally remained in the normal range. However, occasional elevations occurred due to psychological stress, which apparently correlate with changes in group dynamics. Norepinephrine excretion was above the normal range and was correlated with social events. These results suggest that to ensure optimum crew performance, entire crews along with their visiting crews should be selected collectively, rather than individually.

Non-programmatic↗
NASA NTRS2001

Shift changes, updates, and the on-call architecture in space shuttle mission control

In domains such as nuclear power, industrial process control, and space shuttle mission control, there is increased interest in reducing personnel during nominal operations. An essential element in maintaining safe operations in high risk environments with this 'on-call' organizational architecture is to understand how to bring called-in practitioners up to speed quickly during escalating situations. Targeted field observations were conducted to investigate what it means to update a supervisory controller on the status of a continuous, anomaly-driven process in a complex, distributed environment. Sixteen shift changes, or handovers, at the NASA Johnson Space Center were observed during the STS-76 Space Shuttle mission. The findings from this observational study highlight the importance of prior knowledge in the updates and demonstrate how missing updates can leave flight controllers vulnerable to being unprepared. Implications for mitigating risk in the transition to 'on-call' architectures are discussed.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS2001

Human interactions during Shuttle/Mir space missions

To improve the interpersonal climate of crewmembers involved with long-duration space missions, it is important to understand the factors affecting their interactions with each other and with members of mission control. This paper will present findings from a recently completed NASA-funded study during the Shuttle/Mir program which evaluated in-group/out-group displacement of negative emotions; changes in tension, cohesion, and leader support over time; and cultural differences. In-flight data were collected from 5 astronauts, 8 cosmonauts, and 42 American and 16 Russian mission control personnel who signed informed consent. Subjects completed a weekly questionnaire that assessed their mood and perception of their work group's interpersonal climate using questions from well-known, standardized measures (Profile of Mood States, Group and Work Environment Scales) and a critical incident log. There was strong evidence for the displacement of tension and dysphoric emotions from crewmembers to mission control personnel and from mission control personnel to management. There was a perceived decrease in commander support during the 2nd half of the missions, and for American crewmembers a novelty effect was found on several subscales during the first few months on-orbit. There were a number of differences between American and Russian responses which suggested that the former were less happy with their interpersonal environment than the latter. Mission control personnel reported more tension and dysphoria than crewmembers, although both groups scored better than other work groups on Earth. Nearly all reported critical incidents came from ground subjects, with Americans and Russians showing important differences in response frequencies.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS2001

Human interactions in space: results from Shuttle/Mir

Background: Anecdotal reports from space and results from simulation studies on Earth have suggested that space crewmembers may experience decrements in their interpersonal environment over time and may displace tension and dysphoria to mission control personnel. Methods: To evaluate these issues, we studied 5 American astronauts, 8 Russian cosmonauts, and 42 American and 16 Russian mission control personnel who participated in the Shuttle/Mir space program. Subjects completed questions from subscales of the Profile of Mood States, the Group Environment Scale, and the Work Environment Scale on a weekly basis before, during, and after the missions. Results: Among the crewmembers, there was little evidence for significant time effects based on triphasic (U-shaped) or linear models for the 21 subscales tested, although the presence of an initial novelty effect that declined over time was found in three subscales for the astronauts. Compared with work groups on Earth, the crewmembers reported less dysphoria and perceived their crew environment as more constraining, cohesive, and guided by leadership. There was no change in ratings of mood and interpersonal environment before, during, and after the missions. Conclusions: There was little support for the presence of a moderate to strong time effect that influenced the space crews. Crewmembers perceived their work environment differently from people on Earth, and they demonstrated equanimity in mood and group perceptions, both in space and on the ground. Grant numbers: NAS9-19411. c 2001. Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Soyuz Project↗
NASA NTRS2000

An all-woman crew to Mars: a radical proposal

It is logical to propose that if a human mission is flown to Mars, it should be composed of an entirely female crew. On the average, women have lower mass and take less volume than males, and use proportionately less consumables. In addition, sociological research indicates that a female crew may have a preferable interpersonal dynamic, and be likely to choose non-confrontational approaches to solve interpersonal problems.

Space Flight/organization & administration↗
NASA NTRS2000

Culture in the cockpit: do Hofstede's dimensions replicate?

Survey data collected from 9,400 male commercial airline pilots in 19 countries were used in a replication study of Hofstede's indexes of national culture. The analysis that removed the constraint of item equivalence proved superior, both conceptually and empirically, to the analysis using Hofstede's items and formulae as prescribed, and rendered significant replication correlations for all indexes (Individualism-Collectivism .96, Power Distance .87, Masculinity-Femininity .75, and Uncertainty Avoidance .68). The successful replication confirms that national culture exerts an influence on cockpit behavior over and above the professional culture of pilots, and that "one size fits all" training is inappropriate.

Non-NASA Center↗