Psychometric properties of the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire.

The Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) is used in ergonomics research to measure behavioural problems associated with attentiveness and memory in everyday life. CFQ scores have been related to constructs such as accident proneness and outcomes such as human error and psychological strain. The two-year test-retest reliability of the CFQ is reported together with the findings of factor analyses of CFQ data from 535 respondents. Evidence for the predictive and criterion validity and internal reliability of the CFQ is provided. Psychological strain was measured concurrently with CFQ on both testing occasions, two years apart. The test-retest reliability of the summated CFQ score was found to be 0.71, while for the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) strain measure it was 0.32.The relative variance stability was five times greater for the CFQ than the GHQ, indicating that scores on these questionnaires are not covariates. The use of the CFQ as a measure of cognitive control capacity is also discussed. PRACTITIONER SUMMARY: Ergonomists have long been interested in human error and the role of high work demands due to poor equipment design and excessive workload. The CFQ measures attentiveness in daily life and is shown to have excellent psychometric properties that make it suitable for use in both laboratory and field studies as a trait measure of attentiveness in daily life.

Accident proneness revisited: the role of psychological stress and cognitive failure.

Understanding why accidents occur in the work place has a long and convoluted history. This paper adds to this corpus of research by investigating the relationship between an individual's level of cognitive failure, psychological stress, and work place accident occurrence. Retrospective analysis of accident-case individuals vs. control-match individuals on the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) was undertaken from amalgamated data of two Royal Navy databases. Individuals in the accident-case sub-sample had higher GHQ and CFQ scores when compared to matched-controls. Mediated regression analysis revealed high GHQ score predicted accidents but was transmitted through high CFQ scores. Individuals who are stressed are more likely to have an accident in the workplace because of a propensity for cognitive failures. A specific recommendation to reduce accident risk in the work-place is discussed.

Cognitive task demands, self-control demands and the mental well-being of office workers.

The cognitive task demands of office workers and the self-control demands of their work roles were measured in a sample of 196 employees in two different office layouts using a self-report questionnaire, which was circulated electronically. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that both factors were associated with mental well-being, but not with physical well-being, while controlling for exposure to psychosocial stressors. The interaction between cognitive task demands and self-control demands had the strongest association with mental well-being, suggesting that the deleterious effect of one was greater when the other was present. An exploratory analysis revealed that the association was stronger for employees working in a large open-plan office than for those working in smaller offices with more privacy. Frustration of work goals was the cognitive task demand having the strongest negative impact on mental well-being. Methodological limitations and scale psychometrics (particularly the use of the NASA Task Load Index) are discussed. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: Modern office work has high mental demands and low physical demands and there is a need to design offices to prevent adverse psychological reactions. It is shown that cognitive task demands interact with self-control demands to degrade mental well-being. The association was stronger in an open-plan office.

Cumulative psychological strain and future strain in Naval personnel: is executive function the elephant in the room?

Psychological strain was measured in 592 Naval personnel at four phases using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). The GHQ-12 Likert score was summed to generate a measure of cumulative strain, which was best predicted by the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) score, effort-reward imbalance and a measure of organisational commitment. Point strain at phase IV was best predicted by CFQ score, whereas need for recovery was best predicted by over-commitment to work role. Susceptibility to strain, both cumulatively over 2 years and 12 months in the future appears to depend on a cognitive factor measured by the CFQ. This factor was more strongly associated with strain than with fatigue. Psychosocial stress exposure at work played a lesser role in predicting cumulative and future strain, possibly because these stressors were of an acute nature. The findings are discussed with reference to recent research on attention and anxiety and some of the practical implications are considered. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: There is renewed interest in intrinsic variables that predict adverse reactions to occupational stress. The paper presents evidence that self-reported cognitive failure is a vulnerability factor for future episodes of psychological strain. The paper strengthens the conclusions of a previous article and adds empirical support to recent research on the links between anxiety and attention.

Job strain related to cognitive failure in naval personnel.

The Naval Service Stress Study (2007-2012) is investigating job strain, its characteristics, causes and distribution in the Service. Data from phases I, II and III of the study (January 2007, June 2007 and January 2008) were analysed to determine the relationship between General Health questionnaire scores and a score on the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) completed at phase III. Of 791 personnel who completed questionnaires at all phases, 43.6% had no job strain at any phase, whereas 9.9% had strain on all three occasions ('chronic strain'). 27% had strain at one of the three phases and 19% had strain at two of the three phases. The particular phase at which job strain was experienced was not related to CFQ score at phase III, whereas the total strain experienced over the period was related. High strain over the year was the strongest predictor of high CFQ score. A 'strain dose' variable, which combined both the amount of strain exposure and the timing of the exposure, explained little additional variance in CFQ score. The findings might be interpreted to indicate that a high CFQ score is a vulnerability factor for adverse reactions to work stress. The hypothesis that recent job strain elevates CFQ score was not supported. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: Current models of occupational stress focus on psychosocial factors and much of the advice about stress management in organisations is centred on the identification and control of psychosocial risk factors. The present paper provides evidence that cognitive factors are also important and suggests that support for those with poor executive function should be part of stress management in complex environments.

Occupational stress in submariners: the impact of isolated and confined work on psychological well-being.

This study aimed to identify work-related and personal factors associated with occupational stress in submariners. Work and well-being questionnaires were distributed to 219 male submariners (mean age 34 years), as part of a larger cohort study involving a stratified sample of 4951 Royal Navy (RN) personnel. The stress rate in submariners was 40%; significantly higher than the stress rate in the general RN, although once demographic factors were controlled for in a matched control sample, this difference was no longer significant. A summary model accounted for 49% of the variance in submariner stress, with key differences emerging between the occupational factors associated with stress in submariners and in the general RN. The longitudinal nature of this study permits stress in submariners to be monitored over 5 years, which will provide valuable insights into the chronicity of stress in this specialised occupational group. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: This paper contributes to the current literature on the negative impact of working in isolated conditions. It is demonstrated that occupational stress in submarines can be partially explained using current theories of stress in the workplace. However, the constraints of a restricted environment introduce additional factors which can also be associated with occupational stress.

Smoking, BMI and psychological strain and fitness in the Naval Service.

BACKGROUND: Data from the Naval Service (NS) cohort study of psychological strain were extracted and analysed to investigate the relationship between self-reported health and lifestyle factors and medical fitness. Identification of factors associated with medical downgrading is of obvious value in shaping future health and safety policy and in understanding the relative contributions of physical and psychosocial factors to adverse occupational health outcomes. AIMS: To identify variables associated with a lack of fitness to serve. METHOD: Extraction and analysis of data from the Phase I of the study, with a binary outcome of fitness as the dependent variable, controlling for psychosocial and other confounders. RESULTS: Stepwise logistic regression analysis found statistically significant effects due to smoking, body mass index (BMI), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ)-12 and work-family conflict. The model accounted for 5.6% of the variance in medical grading, 3% of which was due to smoking. CONCLUSIONS: With psychosocial factors and GHQ-12 scores accounted for, personnel who were not fully fit for NS were found to be more likely to be smokers and to have a high BMI (> or =25).