Interplay of human factors and safety culture in nuclear safety for enhanced organisational and individual Performance: A comprehensive review

Abstract

The incidents at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl have poignantly spotlighted the indispensable role of human factors and organisational dimensions in ensuring nuclear safety. These events illuminated that beyond the intricate technicalities of nuclear operations, lie the equally significant non-technical facets that warrant utmost attention. While human factors delve into the cognitive and ergonomic challenges faced by operators, safety culture represents the ingrained organisational ethos that promotes or impedes safety standards. While a myriad of studies has dissected the impact of these elements on nuclear safety, the quest for an encompassing methodology that holistically integrates them is still ongoing. This paper embarked on an exhaustive review that probed the symbiotic relationship between human factors, safety culture, organisational performance, and individual performance within nuclear power plants, all the while bearing the indelible imprints of the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl disasters. Beginning with an elucidation of the core tenets of human factors and safety culture and their intrinsic ties to nuclear safety, the review delved deeper into empirical research that illustrated their influence on the overarching safety climate of nuclear establishments. It shines a light on recurrent challenges like communication lapses, leadership oversights, and the ever-present spectre of human error. In its culmination, the review underscored the intertwined nature of these pivotal elements and expounds on their collective import in sculpting a resilient safety culture in nuclear setups. Recommendations for bolstering human factors and safety culture practices, gleaned from the bitter lessons of Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, are proffered. At its core, this paper advocated for an integrative paradigm that melds organisational and individual performance metrics with human factors and safety culture insights, perpetually underscored by rigorous research and evaluation, to ensure the unerring safety and dependability of nuclear power plants.

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