Air-defense experiments
Encyclopedia
The Air-defense experiments were a series of management science experiments performed between 1952 and 1954 by RAND Corporation's Systems Research Laboratory. The experiments were designed to provide information about organizational learning
and how teams improved their performance through practice.
students as crew for the air defense scenario whilst members of the United States Air Force
were used in the latter experiments. For each of the 4 experiments different structures and timespans were used:
s of men operated in an environment composed of complex information
flows making decisions under conditions of high stress
. The experimental design was to simulate an air defense control center in which the team was presented with simulated radar
images showing air traffic
as well as simulated telephone
conversations with outside agencies reporting additional information (such as the availability of interceptor aircraft
or confirmation of civilian
aircraft
).
data and the results of earlier experiments were used to improve the experimental apparatus and organization for later versions of the experiment.
The first experiment (Casey) was conducted with college students from which it was determined that culture
was a large factor in team as well as individual performance. While an attempt had been made to approximate a military
culture in the college student team, the researchers decided that use of actual military personnel would provide more success. Hence later experiments used exclusively servicemen
.
The original experimental design was to provide a particular level of difficulty to determine how well the air-defense team was able learn the individual tasks as well as the intra-team coordination needed to be successful at the air-defense task. The research team also modified the experimental design after the results of Casey, these indicated that crews were able to learn rapidly and were able to accommodate the level of difficulty, within a few sessions, to an effective level.
Beginning with Cowboy, the air-defense crews were presented with a series of sessions each of which had a higher task load than the previous session. The task load was made up of two variables, kind and number of hostile aircraft and characteristics of friendly traffic (among which the hostile aircraft were sprinkled).
In the report on these experiments co-author
s Chapman, Kennedy, Newell, and Biel (1959) write that:
Organizational learning
Organizational learning is an area of knowledge within organizational theory that studies models and theories about the way an organization learns and adapts....
and how teams improved their performance through practice.
Experiment structure
The series was constructed from 4 different experiments (code named Casey, Cowboy, Cobra, and Cogwheel). The first of these (Casey) used collegeCollege
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
students as crew for the air defense scenario whilst members of the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
were used in the latter experiments. For each of the 4 experiments different structures and timespans were used:
- Casey: 28 college students, 54 4-hour sessions
- Cowboy: 39 Air Force officerOfficer (armed forces)An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
s and airmenAirmanAn airman is a member of the air component of a nation's armed service. In the United States Air Force and the Royal Air Force , it can also refer to a specific enlisted rank...
, 22 8-hour sessions - Cobra: 40 Air Force officers and airmen, 22 8-hour sessions
- Cogwheel: 33 Air Force officers and airmen, 14 4-hour sessions
Purpose
The purpose of the experiments was to examine how teamTeam
A team comprises a group of people or animals linked in a common purpose. Teams are especially appropriate for conducting tasks that are high in complexity and have many interdependent subtasks.A group in itself does not necessarily constitute a team...
s of men operated in an environment composed of complex information
Information
Information in its most restricted technical sense is a message or collection of messages that consists of an ordered sequence of symbols, or it is the meaning that can be interpreted from such a message or collection of messages. Information can be recorded or transmitted. It can be recorded as...
flows making decisions under conditions of high stress
Stress (medicine)
Stress is a term in psychology and biology, borrowed from physics and engineering and first used in the biological context in the 1930s, which has in more recent decades become commonly used in popular parlance...
. The experimental design was to simulate an air defense control center in which the team was presented with simulated radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
images showing air traffic
Air traffic control
Air traffic control is a service provided by ground-based controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and in the air. The primary purpose of ATC systems worldwide is to separate aircraft to prevent collisions, to organize and expedite the flow of traffic, and to provide information and other...
as well as simulated telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
conversations with outside agencies reporting additional information (such as the availability of interceptor aircraft
Interceptor aircraft
An interceptor aircraft is a type of fighter aircraft designed specifically to prevent missions of enemy aircraft, particularly bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Interceptors generally rely on high speed and powerful armament in order to complete their mission as quickly as possible and set up...
or confirmation of civilian
Civilian
A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
aircraft
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
).
Results and conclusions
The experiment series generated a great deal of both qualitative and quantitativeNumerical data
Numerical data is data measured or identified on a numerical scale. Numerical data can be analyzed using statistical methods, and results can be displayed using tables, charts, histograms and graphs. For example, a researcher will ask a questions to a participant that include words how often, how...
data and the results of earlier experiments were used to improve the experimental apparatus and organization for later versions of the experiment.
The first experiment (Casey) was conducted with college students from which it was determined that culture
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
was a large factor in team as well as individual performance. While an attempt had been made to approximate a military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
culture in the college student team, the researchers decided that use of actual military personnel would provide more success. Hence later experiments used exclusively servicemen
Soldier
A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
.
The original experimental design was to provide a particular level of difficulty to determine how well the air-defense team was able learn the individual tasks as well as the intra-team coordination needed to be successful at the air-defense task. The research team also modified the experimental design after the results of Casey, these indicated that crews were able to learn rapidly and were able to accommodate the level of difficulty, within a few sessions, to an effective level.
Beginning with Cowboy, the air-defense crews were presented with a series of sessions each of which had a higher task load than the previous session. The task load was made up of two variables, kind and number of hostile aircraft and characteristics of friendly traffic (among which the hostile aircraft were sprinkled).
In the report on these experiments co-author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
s Chapman, Kennedy, Newell, and Biel (1959) write that:
See also
- Business performance managementBusiness performance managementBusiness performance management is a set of management and analytic processes that enable the management of an organization's performance to achieve one or more pre-selected goals...
- Forming-Storming-Norming-Performing team formation modelForming-storming-norming-performingThe Forming – Storming – Norming – Performing model of group development was first proposed by Bruce Tuckman in 1965, who maintained that these phases are all necessary and inevitable in order for the team to grow, to face up to challenges, to tackle problems, to find solutions, to plan work, and...
- Key performance indicatorsKey performance indicatorsA performance indicator or key performance indicator is an industry jargon for a type of performance measurement.. KPIs are commonly used by an organization to evaluate its success or the success of a particular activity in which it is engaged...
- Performance improvementPerformance improvementPerformance improvement is the concept of measuring the output of a particular process or procedure, then modifying the process or procedure to increase the output, increase efficiency, or increase the effectiveness of the process or procedure...
- Qualitative researchQualitative researchQualitative research is a method of inquiry employed in many different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social sciences, but also in market research and further contexts. Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such...
- Qualitative psychological researchQualitative psychological researchIn psychology, qualitative research has come to be defined as research whose findings are not arrived at by statistical or other quantitative procedures. Qualitative research is often said to be naturalistic. That is, its goal is to understand behaviour in a natural setting...
- Quality managementQuality managementThe term Quality management has a specific meaning within many business sectors. This specific definition, which does not aim to assure 'good quality' by the more general definition , can be considered to have four main components: quality planning, quality control, quality assurance and quality...
- Quantitative researchQuantitative researchIn the social sciences, quantitative research refers to the systematic empirical investigation of social phenomena via statistical, mathematical or computational techniques. The objective of quantitative research is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories and/or hypotheses pertaining to...
- Workplace democracyWorkplace democracyWorkplace democracy is the application of democracy in all its forms to the workplace....