Practitioner-Educator Model for Human Factors/Ergonomics Education

Abstract

Human factors/ergonomics is an applied discipline. As such, we question whether students are adequately prepared if they are not learning, at least in part, from instructors who have real-world experience applying human factors/ergonomics knowledge to practical design problems. A wide variety of other disciplines such as medicine, the building trades, clinical psychology, military strategy, aviation, and the visual and performing arts have all faced this question and come up with educational approaches that typically include educators who are highly skilled in the practice of the discipline. Terms such as practitioner-scholar and scientist-practitioner, and the apprentice models all reflect this notion of students learning from highly skilled, knowledgeable, and practiced professionals in their disciplines. Is it time for human factors/ergonomics education to adopt such a model?