Recommendations for reducing ambiguity in written procedures.

Technical Report · Sun Nov 01 00:00:00 EDT 2009

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/976943· OSTI ID:976943

Matzen, Laura E

Previous studies in the nuclear weapons complex have shown that ambiguous work instructions (WIs) and operating procedures (OPs) can lead to human error, which is a major cause for concern. This report outlines some of the sources of ambiguity in written English and describes three recommendations for reducing ambiguity in WIs and OPs. The recommendations are based on commonly used research techniques in the fields of linguistics and cognitive psychology. The first recommendation is to gather empirical data that can be used to improve the recommended word lists that are provided to technical writers. The second recommendation is to have a review in which new WIs and OPs and checked for ambiguities and clarity. The third recommendation is to use self-paced reading time studies to identify any remaining ambiguities before the new WIs and OPs are put into use. If these three steps are followed for new WIs and OPs, the likelihood of human errors related to ambiguity could be greatly reduced.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), Albuquerque, NM, and Livermore, CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-94AL85000
• OSTI ID: 976943
• Report Number(s): SAND2009-7522; TRN: US201009%%222
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
MANUALS
HUMAN FACTORS ENGINEERING
ERRORS
MITIGATION
RECOMMENDATIONS
Operating Procedures
Materials Treatment
Nuclear weapons plants.
Written communication-Social aspects.
Nuclear weapons-Government policy.