As others have stated, the term "brainwashing" carries a strong negative
overtone. Nobody is willingly "brainwashed" - the term always implies that
the action is being done against someone's will. Today's CRM courses are
not exercises in deception - they are designed to enhance performance and
manage error. When the courses are designed and delivered appropriately,
aviators understand the benefits and move toward acquiring the new skills.
If you tell me orange juice is good for me, and other sources also present
the argument that OJ is nutritious, and I drink it, have I been
brainwashed, or have I weighed the evidence and made my own decision about
what is good for me? (If you say yes, then are you saying that
brainwashing applies to all forms of information dissemination and/or
education?)
To say CRM is a form of brainwashing is to suggest that today's aviation
personnel are incapable of independent thought, or that they resist
attempts to improve their performance. In my experience, pilots are united
in wanting to know how they can do their jobs better. To suggest anything
else is an insult to their professionalism, and an insult to our work in
the research and development field.
Ashleigh Merritt, Ph.D.,
Aerospace Crew Research Project
1609 Shoal Creek Blvd., Suite 200, Austin TX 78757 USA
ph: 512 480 9997 fax: 512 480 0234 Homepage:
http://www.psy.utexas.edu/psy/helmreich/nasaut.htm