PERFORMANCE OF GROUPS IN EXTREME ENVIRONMENTS: A META- ANALYTIC INTEGRATION

WITH FUTURE NASA MISSIONS CHARACTERIZED BY LONGER FLIGHT DURATIONS, INCREASED CREW SIZE, AND GREATER CREW HETEROGENEITY, MANAGING THE HUMAN COMPONENT OF THE FLIGHT SYSTEM BECOMES AN EVEN MORE CRITICAL TASK. A VAST AMOUNT OFRESEARCH HAS BEEN PERFORMED SINCE THE 1950'S EXAMINING HUMANPERFORMANCE IN EXOTIC ENVIRONMENTS, PRODUCING VALUABLE YET OFTEN SEEMINGLY CONFLICTING RESULTS THAT ARE DIFFICULT TO INTEGRATE AT THE NARRATIVE LEVEL. THIS PROJECT TAKES A UNIQUE AND INNOVATIVE APPROACH, USING A META-ANALYTIC STATISTICAL TECHNIQUE, TO ANALYZE, COMPARE, AND INTEGRATE RESEARCH ON PERFORMANCE IN EXOTIC ENVIRONMENTS. THE RESULTSOF THIS WORK WILL PROVIDE SPECIFIC DATA ON THOSE VARIABLES THAT HAVE BEEN SUGGESTED OR CONJECTURED TO BE CRITICAL TO EFFECTIVE PERFORMANCE IN THE EXOTIC SPACE ENVIRONMENT. IT WILL ALSO IDENTIFY AND UNCOVER FACTORS THAT MODERATE THE NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF ISOLATION, CONFINEMENT, AND RISK. THIS DATA WILL PROVIDE PRACTICAL AND RELIABLE GUIDELINES FOR THE EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT OF FLIGHT CREWS ON FUTURE SPACE MISSIONS. POTENTIAL COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS: PRACTICAL SPECIFICATIONSAND GUIDELINES FOR SELECTION, TRAINING, AND HUMAN FACTORS DESIGN OF EXOTIC ENVIRONMENTS ARE DIRECTLY APPLICABLE TO COMMERCIAL ENTITIES THAT PERFORM CRUCIAL TASKS IN STRESSOR ENVIRONMENTS INCLUDING COMMERCIAL AVIATION, THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY, AND THE PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRY.