Studies of human behavior have tried to determine an individual’s predisposition to taking risks and the level of an individual’s involvement in accidents. In 1951, a study regarding injury-prone children was published by Elizabeth Mechem Fuller and Helen B. Baune of the University of Minnesota.

The accident-free group showed a superior knowledge of safety, were considered industrious and cooperative with others, but were not considered physically inclined. The accident-repeater group had better gymnastic skills, were considered aggressive and impulsive, demonstrated rebellious behavior when under stress, were poor losers, and liked to be the center of attention. Pilots are drawn from the general population and exhibit all types of personality traits; thus, it is important that good decision-making skills be taught to all pilots.

Historically, the term “pilot error” has been used to describe an accident in which an action or decision made by the pilot was the cause or a contributing factor. From a broader perspective, the phrase “human factors related” more aptly describes these accidents: a single decision or event does not lead to an accident, but a series of events and the resultant decisions together form a chain of events leading to an outcome.

In his article “Accident-Prone Pilots,” Dr. Patrick R. Veillette uses the history of “Captain Everyman” to demonstrate how aircraft accidents are caused more by a chain of poor choices rather than one single poor choice. Skipping details on a checklist appears to be a common theme in such accidents. What makes a pilot less prone to accidents?

The successful pilot possesses the ability to concentrate, manage workloads, and monitor and perform several simultaneous tasks.

The FAA oversaw an extensive research study that surveyed over 4,000 pilots, half with “clean” records and half who had been involved in an accident.

Five traits were discovered in pilots prone to having accidents.

These pilots:

• Have disdain toward rules.
• Have a very high correlation between accidents on their flying records and safety violations on their driving records.
• Frequently fall into the “thrill and adventure seeking” personality category.
• Are impulsive rather than methodical and disciplined, both in their information gathering and in the speed and selection of actions to be taken.
• Have a disregard for, or under-utilization of, outside sources of information, including copilots, flight attendants, flight service personnel, flight instructors, and air traffic controllers.