We all know that safety partly rests in formal structures and protocols, but fundamentally in attitudes. But what do we really know about seafarers’ attitudes? And how do these attitudes differ depending on national culture, professional culture and organizational culture? This is what we shall try to find answers to in a new project that has just been launched.

Very shortly, all MRM training providers will get access to this web-based attitude survey for comments and suggestions before final launch. Participation will be on a voluntary basis, strict confidentiality guaranteed for all individuals involved, but will provide participating parties with useful feedback and opportunities for benchmarking analyses. A summary of the survey will also be used for further development of the MRM course module on Attitudes.

To our knowledge, an attitude survey of this scale has never been carried out in our industry before. So far only amongst flying pilots and medical doctors. These professions will be our reference groups when we compare attitudes related to professional culture. We are convinced that this survey will generate most useful and interesting results.

January 2010

Martin Hernqvist
The Swedish Club Academy