Michael Engle’s

Culture in the Cockpit -

CRM in a Multicultural World

How Culture Can Affect Communication

Amanda Akers, Amanda Trescott, Toni Autry

June 19, 2014
Agenda
● Author Info - Amanda A
● Historical Context - Amanda A
● The Study - Amanda T
● Key Findings - Toni
● Diagnosing O&M Issues - Toni
● Implications - Toni
● Group Activity - Amanda A
About the Author
Languages
Russian
Skills & Endorsements
● Manned Spaceflight
● Manned Spacecraft Design
● Aircraft Operations
● Commercial pilot
Education
● Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
○ Master of Aeronautical Science,
Aerospace Human Factors and
Safety
● University of Houston
○ Master's degree, Astronomy and
Space Science
● University of Kentucky
○ Bachelor of Science (B.S.),
Mechanical Engineering
The Author Cont.
Other Publications
● 2004 - Operational Considerations for Manned Lunar Landing Missions -
Lessons Learned from Apollo
● 2006 - Space Shuttle Thermal Protection System Repair Flight Experiment
Induced Contamination Impact
● N/D - Natural and Induced Space Environments on the International Space
Station
Historical Context
● 1977 Korean Air Lines (KAL) Boeing 707 wanders into
Russian Airspace, shot down
● 1979 KAL Boeing 747 crashes in Seoul
● 1982 KAL Boeing 747 crashes in Russia
● 1987 KAL Boeing 707 crashes over Andaman Sea (Thailand)
● 1989 KAL Crashes - Tripoli and Seoul
● 1994 KAL crashes in Seoul
● 1997 KAL crashes in Guam
● 1999 Delta and Air France suspend flying partnership
Failure Rate is 17x US rate - Article published in 2000
Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The story of success. Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY.
Previous Literature
Engle’s Literature Review covers:
● CRM
● National Culture Dimensions
● High and Low Context
Crew Resource Management (CRM)
● What is CRM?
● Who uses CRM?
● Dilemmas of CRM use
National Culture
● Culture = “national culture”
● National Culture Dimensions per Dutch
psychologist Geert Hofstede
o Power Distance (PD)
o Uncertainty Avoidance (UA)
o Individual Collectivism (IND)
High and Low Context
● How the three aspects of national culture
define High and Low Context
● Cultures that are High Context and Low
Context
● High/Low Context and CRM
 High Context Low Context
PD PD
Brazil
UA UA USA

IND IND

Korea South
New
Russia Zealand Africa

Philippines Germany
Mexico Scandinavian
Countries
CRM Tailored to Culture
● The ideal culture for optimum CRM use
● Universal values across national culture
Recommendations
1. We do not need individual CRMs for every
culture
2. Two curricula are sufficient - high context
and low context
3. These targeted trainings support cultures'
strengths, and strengthen weaknesses
Key Findings
● CRM/Human Behavior should be tailored to fit the
culture
● Training needs to be adapted to the culture in which it is
taught
● Universal VALUE: coordination and communication are
vitally important
● No one universally correct method of communication
● It is too challenging to meet all cultural needs, but one
method is to classify high and low context
Diagnosing O&M Issues
1. Does my organization conduct trainings on Cultural
Competence for staff?
2. Does my organization address or acknowledge that
there are a variety of cultures present?
3. Do management and subordinates communicate
effectively? Are there examples of conflict as a result of
poor communication?
Implications
What does this mean for PA Students?
● We exist in a diverse workforce - people will need to
recognize that different cultures communicate
differently.
● Without recognition of these differences, serious
problems could arise.
● We should not blame cultures, but instead, work to
understand diverse communication styles.
Group Work
● Does your workplace operate under high
context or low context?
● How does this affect your operations?

High Context: Emphasis placed on communication, but tends to talk

around points rather than directly stating them
Low Context:Direct and to the point with communications, focused on
task rather than person
Example #1
Captain to First Officer: Advise [the tower] we don’t have fuel.
First Officer to Tower: ...Ah, we’re running out of fuel, sir
Captain to First Officer: Tell them we are in an emergency!
First Officer to Tower: ...Ah, we’ll try [circling around] once again. We’re
running out of fuel.
Tower: ...I’m gonna bring you about 15 miles NE and then turn you back onto
the approach. Is that okay with you and your fuel?
First Officer to Tower: I guess so. Thank you very much. [It is not ok.]
Captain to First Officer: What did he say?
First Officer to Captain: The guy is angry. [What? Why does that matter?]

Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The story of success. Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY.
Example #2
Captain to Tower: We have a passenger who has had a stroke and we need
to make an emergency landing now in Helsinki.
Tower: We are clearing you to land immediately.
Captain: I have never landed at this airport before.
Tower: We will walk you through it.
Captain: We are sixty tons over maximum landing weight. I am heavy [we have
too much fuel] and I would like to land into the wind [which will help to slow us
down].
Tower: No problem. We are ready for you to land. [proceeds to walk Captain
through specifics]

Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The story of success. Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY.