Presenteeism Among Ab-initio Pilots in Turkey

Abstract

In this study, we set out to estimate the prevalence of presenteeism and to define its possible association with organizational factors, committing errors and stress among ab-initio pilots. Presenteeism is a major safety-related issue and has been extensively studied in a variety of occupation groups. As a cross-sectional study, a self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data from ab-initio pilots. The participants assessed themselves on the Stanford Presenteeism Scale (SPS-6). Correlation analysis was performed to explore the association between organizational factors and presenteeism. Based on the findings, the prevalence of presenteeism was 29.1 percent among the ab-initio pilots (N=175). Furthermore, there was a strong association between training-related stress (p< 0.01) and presenteeism. The student pilots with presenteeism were found to make mistakes during flight. Better and effective supervision for ab-initio pilots was associated with lower levels of presenteeism, highlighting the need for a supportive and comfortable atmosphere in the flight deck in which ab-initio pilots may feel comfortable. The findings presented here may facilitate improvements in the field of aviation safety.