Team performance in process control: influences of interface design and staffing levels

A study performed at the OECD Halden Reactor Project compared the effects o f interface design and staffing levels on various aspects of team performan ce. Teams of nuclear power plant operators participated in challenging simu lator scenarios, working in either a simulated conventional plant, with a h ard-control interface, or in a simulated advanced plant, with a computerize d interface. Two-team staffing levels, normal and minimum, were evaluated i n each plant condition. All teams participated in the same five study condi tions, lasting 1-3 h each. Several measures assessed team performance: situ ation awareness, workload, rated team interactions, rated overall performan ce and objective performance. The findings revealed that combinations of in terface design and staffing levels supported different aspects of performan ce. Larger crews consistently performed better than smaller crews in the co nventional plant. In the advanced plant, both crew types performed equally well; however, smaller crews had better situation awareness than larger cre ws. In general, performance was better for crews using the advanced plant i nterface, but workload was higher. Workload also was consistently higher in the smaller crews than in the larger crews, regardless of interface type. Links between the performance measures were also noted.