I don't want to take the discussion off track, but Mark Rosekind and the
Z-Team at NASA Ames (Fatigue Research) clearly proved that we are very
poor judges of our own state of fatigue and alertness.
The second part of their research showed that increased sleep
deprivation resulted in increasingly poor performance by flight crews -
in both motor and cognitive activities.
Fatigue is just one form of stress, but I can't help conclude that
most/all are (1) tough to self-assess and (2) have the potential to
degrade one's performance, if the stress is high enough.
Re: the reluctance of a crew member to alert others to the fact that
they may be carrying more stress than usual or be more fatigued than
usual - I'd sincerely hope that message would be exchanged without
hesitation, regardless of crew position or seniority.
The most common expression I've heard used has been; "I've got a lot on
my mind right now, so keep a close eye on me" or "I got a lousy night's
rest last night, so ...". The statement invites closer scrutiny by the
other crew member(s) without asking for someone to serve as
father-confessor-counselor. No matter how dedicated, skilled or
professional we might be, we will all experience a time when our
performance is degraded by one form of stress or another.
Pete
Southwest Airlines