Recognizing our Psychological Resources

In 2003, an organizational psychologist and her team investigated the high level of employee turnover at an Australian Call Center (Lewig et al, 2003).  The workers presented with absenteeism, exhaustion and job dissatisfaction. Emotional Dissonance (EMDI) was at the root of the problems.  EMDI increased the emotional labour of the employees which in turn, increased the amount of emotional and mental effort required to carry out the job. 

In the presence of job stressors, EMDI is felt more acutely. It negatively impacts upon wellbeing and in the case of the ATCO,  safety performance is reduced. It is thus an important feature in industries that manufacture services. Since it is a psychologically derived issue, emotional dissonance and its coping response of indifference can be counteracted by the presence of psychological resources in the ATC unit. What then are our psychological resources in ATC? Please read on...

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Evidence on Emotional Dissonance among Controllers

What do you think of Zerbato's depiction of apathy or indifference in the illustration above? Indifference is an item that was used as part of a preliminary study to test for emotional dissonance (EMDI) among controllers. Last April, 139 random controllers from around the world answered an online survey on wellbeing. What did the survey reveal about EMDI?

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Emotional Dissonance as part of an ATCO's Production Function

Y = F(K,L)

If you never did microeconomics, you will find this post particularly interesting. Those of you who did will enjoy the unusual twist. The equation above shows how outputs are related to inputs in production. It is our classic production function that tells us that production or output (Y) is a function (F) of the inputs, capital (K) and labor (L).  How can we apply that function to the ATCO?  We can start by identifying  the products of ATC or the goods of demand and supply.  What do you think these goods are? And where can we place Emotional Dissonance (EMDI) in the production function? 

An artistic impression of  dissonance

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Emotional Dissonance in Air Traffic Control

  "The fox who longed for grapes, beholds with pain

The tempting clusters were too high to gain;

Greived in his heart he forced a careless smile,

And cried,"They're sharp and hardly worth my while."  

- Aphra Behn c.1687

Remember that fable? Well that is a classic example of cognitive dissonance. We know the essence of the fable. He wanted the grapes but he could not reach them so he left. Then he justified leaving the grapes behind by the reasoning that the grapes were not good. This belief conflicted with his initial belief and that is what my psychological counterparts call cognitive dissonance. 

Today, we are going to look at an application of this dissonance in ATC. It is called Emotional Dissonance or EMDI. 

EMDI is the conflict that an ATCO feels between her emotions while at work.  For an ATCO must remain calm at all times. EMDI is also fuelled by stressors in ATC. What are some stressors in Air Traffic Control? How can an ATCO experience EMDI? What are the implications for safety in ATC performance?

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Performance Based Navigation through Psychoeconomic Lens: Part IV - Avoiding the White Elephant Trap

 White elephants or albino elephants were treasures of Asian royalty as can be seen from this 19th century Thai mural. Legend says that they were given as presents to obnoxious persons or persons who did not find favor with the royal regime. The elephants were very costly to maintain and were merely decorative. They now symbolise ventures that incur excessive liability or projects where the costs outweigh the benefits. How can we avoid having white elephants in the ATC units?

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Summary of Posts & Highlights for 2012

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