A Framework for Understanding Crew Performance Assessment Issues

The focus of this special issue is on training pilot instructors to assess crew performance. In this opening article we attempt to set the stage for the other articles in this issue by introducing a framework for understanding crew-performance assessment. We use this framework to outline issues that should be addressed when training pilot instructors, and we point to specific articles in the special issue that begin to answer these questions. We also look to literature from domains outside aviation psychology for guidance. Research on performance appraisal in the field of industrial psychology provides techniques and knowledge relevant to training instructors to evaluate crews reliably and validly. We conclude with a series of research questions that should be addressed.