Consciously Safe, Unconsciously Unsafe or Head in the Sand Safety Some of the silly language that exists in the safety industry that surfaces all of the time in the MiProfile survey is about ‘being careful’ and ‘being aware’ or ‘being mindful’ of safety. It is astounding just how much this … [Read more...] about Consciously Safe, Unconsciously Unsafe or Head in the Sand Safety
unconscious
Practice, Repetition, Habit, Routine, Ritual and Decision Making in Risk
Practice, Repetition, Habit, Routine, Ritual and Decision Making in Risk Most decisions made by people are unconscious. The idea that decision making is brain activity between individuals is simply not supported by the evidence (https://neurosciencenews.com/collective-intelligence-19512/ ). We know … [Read more...] about Practice, Repetition, Habit, Routine, Ritual and Decision Making in Risk
The Rational, aRational and Irrational in Safety
Safety seems to avoid the most important things when thinking about tackling risk. There seems to be no interest in safety in the nature of the human unconscious nor any interest in anything outside of a narrow worldview that constructs humans-as-brains-on-bodies and cognition as brain-work. The … [Read more...] about The Rational, aRational and Irrational in Safety
Daydreaming and Safety
Daydreaming and Safety I can remember when the song Daydream was released (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnlCtPh25jk), I was 13 years of age and the music of the time was astounding even revolutionary. The Lovin’ Spoonful’s version of this song raced to the top of the charts in 1966. It captured … [Read more...] about Daydreaming and Safety
When Art Speaks to Harm
One of the fascinating ways we talk of concepts is to personify them. We talk about ‘the market’, ‘the economy’, ‘politics, ‘Canberra’, ‘society’, ‘Washington’ as if they are a person. We attribute personal value to these places and their behaviours as Archetypes. Most of the time we talk this way … [Read more...] about When Art Speaks to Harm
The Challenge of the Consciousness Taboo
One of the by-products of STEM-only thinking in safety is the taboo of consciousness. You won’t find this challenging issue being discussed anywhere in the industry. How strange, because if there was any one subject that should be of critical importance to this industry it would be about conscious … [Read more...] about The Challenge of the Consciousness Taboo
Actions in ‘Bad Faith’
Actions in ‘Bad Faith’ Dan Petersen writes at the start of Chapter 8 in Human-Error Reduction and Safety Management (p. 109): ‘The decision to err, or to work unsafely, is often a very logical choice that is made either consciously or unconsciously by the worker.’ Of course this is a non-sense, … [Read more...] about Actions in ‘Bad Faith’
Scenario Learning in Risk and Safety
Scenario Learning in Risk and Safety One of the best ways of learning safety is through scenarios. Scenarios are constructed to either replicate real situations to maximize perception of recognizable cues or, to enhance the imagination of possibilities. One of the greatest capabilities a safety … [Read more...] about Scenario Learning in Risk and Safety
THE INFLUENCE OF VISUAL STIMULI ON THE UNCONSCIOUS
This is one of the assignments from the Post Grad in Psychology of Risk being run by Dr Rob Long (more details about the course here) Felix has given me permission to send it to you, if you think readers would be interested. THE INFLUENCE OF VISUAL STIMULI ON THE UNCONSCIOUS by Felix Cheng – Oct … [Read more...] about THE INFLUENCE OF VISUAL STIMULI ON THE UNCONSCIOUS