9.4 Factors Affecting Performance - Fitness/Health To Workload

Question 1

what are the requirements for physical or mental fitness?

Answer 1

there are no requirements

Question 2

what may some companies require prior to employment?

Answer 2

medical assessment to determine fitness and health

Question 3

what is a legal requirement of an aircraft maintenance engineer, in regard to health?

Answer 3

to ensure that they are fit for work

Question 4

why shouldn’t an individual who believes they are letting the team down by taking a leave of absence, worry?

Answer 4

as it is a requirement under P-145 to ensure they have sufficient man-power to fulfil maintenance requirements, and maintenance should be adjusted if staffing level is not sufficient

Question 5

what measures are recommended to maintain fitness and health?

Answer 5

-eating a balanced diet and regularly
-taking 20 minutes worth of exercise 3 days a week
-stop smoking
-don’t over-consume alcohol
-use of medication, alcohol and illicit drugs

Question 6

what is stress?

Answer 6

from the imposition of any demand or set of demands which require us to react, adapt or behave in a particular manner in order to cope with or satisfy them

Question 7

what are the types of stress?

Answer 7

acute (short)
chronic (long)

Question 8

what type of stressor might there be?

Answer 8

physical (heat, cold, noise, vibration)
psychological (emotions, bereavements, domestic problems)
reactive (events occurring in everyday life, time pressure)

Question 9

what are the signs of stress?

Answer 9

-physiological symptoms (sweating, dryness of the mouth)
-health effects (nausea, headaches, sleep issues)
-behavioural symptoms (restlessness, shaking, nervous laughter, appetite, drinking)
-cognitive effects (poor concentration, indecision, forgetfulness)
-subjective effects (anxiety, irritability, depression, moodiness, aggression)

Question 10

what type of domestic stress might there be?

Answer 10

major life changes at home, marriage, the birth of a child, bereavement etc.

Question 11

what are the 2 reasons engineers experience stress at work?

Answer 11

the task or job they are undertaking
the general organisational environement

Question 12

how can work related stress be reduced?

Answer 12

by careful management and good training

Question 13

what are the 2 strategies for responding to stress?

Answer 13

defense
coping

Question 14

what is defence strategy for responding to stress?

Answer 14

alleviation of symptoms using medication/alcohol,
or,
reducing anxiety by being in denial

Question 15

what is the coping strategy for responding to stress?

Answer 15

involves dealing with the source of the stress rather than the symptoms

Question 16

what stress management techniques could one use?

Answer 16

-relaxation techniques
-careful regulation of sleep and diet
-a regime of regular physical exercise
-counselling

Question 17

what are the 2 driving forces behind time pressures/deadlines?

Answer 17

1. deadlines handed down to them
2. their responsibilities to carry out a safe job

Question 18

what effects may time pressures and deadlines have?

Answer 18

positive as it may be stimulating and improve task performance

negative likely to reduce care and attention, increasing errors

Question 19

what should those setting deadlines consider?

Answer 19

-prioritising various pieces of work that need to be done
-actual time to carry out work
-personnel available
-appropriate utilisation of staff
-availability of spares

Question 20

what is important for engineers to do regarding deadlines and time pressure?

Answer 20

for them to voice concerns over inappropriate deadlines

Question 21

what is arousal?

Answer 21

refers to the readiness of a person to perform work

Question 22

what is the optimum level of arousal for optimum performance?

Answer 22

somewhere in between high and low

Question 23

how is the workload for an individual affected?

Answer 23

workload is subjective and each person is different, but can be affected by lots of different factors

physical, mental demands
the circumstances under which the task is being performed
the person and their state

Question 23

how is the workload for an individual affected?

Answer 23

workload is subjective and each person is different, but can be affected by lots of different factors

physical, mental demands
the circumstances under which the task is being performed
the person and their state

Question 24

how is the workload for an individual affected?

Answer 24

workload is subjective and each person is different, but can be affected by lots of different factors

physical, mental demands
the circumstances under which the task is being performed
the person and their state

Question 25

what is overload?

Answer 25

when the workload is very high (over-aroused)

Question 26

what is underload?

Answer 26

when workload is very low (under-aroused)

Question 27

what can underload lead to?

Answer 27

deterioration in performance and an increase in errors

Question 28

how can workload be managed? (4)

Answer 28

-tools and spares available
-allocating tasks to be accomplished in the time available
-human factors training in planning
-encouraging engineers, supervisors and managers to recognise overload

Question 29

what method can be used to relieve an overload situation?

Answer 29

-seek a simpler, legitimate method
-delegating tasks to others
-securing further time to carry out the work
-postponing tasks and refusing additional work