Acute Stress and Train Driver Performance: A Systems Thinking Approach to Understanding Rail Stakeholder Perceptions

ABSTRACT

Train driving is considered a high‐risk occupation for stress and work‐related mental health disorders. Sources of stress exposure during routine operations can impact a drivers' capacity for safe train operation. From a systems thinking perspective, safety is a responsibility shared by stakeholders across the rail transport system, with risk management relying upon those at the higher levels understanding the system state and the extent to which existing controls are achieving safe system functioning. In relation to driver stress, this requires that rail system stakeholders understand both the stressful events that train drivers are exposed to, and the impacts of this stress on driver performance. This research applied Rasmussen's Risk Management Framework to investigate and compare rail safety stakeholder perceptions on the impacts of acute stress on train driver performance. 119 rail stakeholders (drivers, guards, management, and regulators) were presented with three stressful event scenarios and asked to describe and rate impacts on driver performance. Qualitative analysis provided evidence of alignment of perceptions amongst drivers and other stakeholders, with themes indicating some agreement across rail system levels (e.g., across drivers, guards, supervisors, and management). Results revealed the most frequently reported stress impact related to cognition. Practical implications and future research directions to prevent and manage stressful event exposure are discussed.