Theoretical perspectives on error analysis and traffic behaviour

This paper argues that explanations of performance errors in terms of risk-taking, decision making, or problem-solving will often be incomplete. These cognitive, information processing approaches to human error are valuable, but effects of motivation, emotion, and intention also have to be taken into account if we are to provide a more complete understanding of the origins of error. Some recent, more general views on motivation, intention, and emotion are discussed, leading to several so-called action theories, where motivation and intention play a central part, and to recent formulations of attribution theory, where expectancy and emotion are important concepts. Finally the past and the future of human error research is discussed. Some important notions from earlier research are reviewed, with special attention given to Spearman (1928), and a suggestion is briefly introduced for a possible alternative to the computer metaphor of information processing