DECISION MAKING OF MARITIME JUNIOR WATCH OFFICERS: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY by John Sitka III Liberty University A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the EDUC 990 Course Liberty University 2016 2 DECISION MAKING OF MARITIME JUNIOR WATCH OFFICERS: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY by John Sitka III A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Education Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA 2016 APPROVED BY: John R. Duryea, Ed.D., Committee Chair Eric G. Lovik, Ph.D., Committee Member Jonna Bobzien, Ph.D., Committee Member Scott Watson, Ph.D., Associate Dean, Advanced Programs 3 ABSTRACT The tanker Exxon Valdez and cruise ship Empress of the North were each involved in a major incident involving poor decision making by the junior officer on watch, resulting in the grounding of their vessels. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological qualitative study was to describe the decision-making process of 15 maritime junior watch officers in a high- resolution simulation in adverse-condition scenarios. Data collection utilized observations, interviews and a self-efficacy assessment. For data analysis I used the constant comparative method applied to the data, developing codes, which were analyzed and reduced to 3 key themes: (a) the Decision-Making Process, (b) Factors in Decision Making, and (c) Motivations and Solutions to Decision Making. The findings suggested that working or short-term memory; emotional intelligence; self-efficacy; and skills, rules and knowledge were major factors of how successfully novice decision makers made their decisions. At least 2 of these factors are within the affective domain. The results indicated that maritime educators who utilize teaching aids and methods that stimulate the affective domain as early as possible in the education process will be promoting growth in the decision-making skills of students. The results also indicated that implementation of a mentoring program within the maritime industry and making it a part of the normal practice for new officers will continue to foster strong decision-making skills. To that end, curriculum for leadership and managerial skills courses required in maritime education should include benefits of a mentoring program and how such a program should be implemented. Keywords: maritime junior watch officers, novice decision making, self-efficacy, emotional intelligence, working memory, maritime education, affective learning objectives, mentoring. 4 Dedication To the following: My wife Paula My sons John and Joshua My daughter Jennifer and her very special children Kaitlyn and Ronnie And to my best two friends: T. L. Ward Arthur H. Goldman Jr. 5 Acknowledgments I wish to acknowledge the following people: without their assistance, this manuscript would not be possible. My chair, Dr. John R. Duryea, acted as the perfect mentor by keeping me on the straight and narrow throughout the entire process. I enjoyed working with Dr. Jonna Bobzien during lunch on more than one occasion because of her non-maritime and psychological insights; she helped me to see issues from different points of view. Dr. Eric G. Lovik was insightful and very thoughtful with his input. Dr. Frederick Milacci was my research consultant and professor in several other classes, whose seemingly infinite patience helped me clarify and define the research questions and the direction of the research. Dr. Patti Stoudt, my editor, helped me transition to my finished product. Captain Edward Nanartowich, President of Mid-Atlantic Maritime Academy, arranged with another maritime academy for me to conduct the research. A special acknowledgement goes to those individuals at “Northeast Maritime Academy”: Dr. Timothy Lynch, Provost and Vice President of Academics; Captain Walter Nadolny, Department Chair of the Marine Transportation Department; Captain Christopher Begley, Captain William S. Ducey, and Jeffrey Spillane without whose cooperation and support this research would not been possible. Finally, a special thanks is extended to Captain Robert Allee and Dr. Steve Price, because of their maritime background; they both gave me clear direction on where to start and helped me make course correction in forming the concepts of the manuscript. 6 Table of Contents ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... 3 Dedication ........................................................................................................................... 4 Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... 5 Table of Tables ................................................................................................................. 11 List of Abbreviations ........................................................................................................ 12 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 14 Overview ........................................................................................................................... 14 Background ....................................................................................................................... 15 Situation to Self ................................................................................................................. 19 Problem Statement ............................................................................................................ 20 Purpose Statement ............................................................................................................. 21 Significance of the Study .................................................................................................. 22 Research Questions ........................................................................................................... 23 Research Plan .................................................................................................................... 24 Delimitations and Limitations ........................................................................................... 26 Delimitations ......................................................................................................... 26 Limitations ............................................................................................................ 27 Definitions ........................................................................................................................ 28 Summary ........................................................................................................................... 30 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................... 32 Overview ........................................................................................................................... 32 Theoretical Framework ..................................................................................................... 32 7 Short-Term Memory, Working Memory, and Intelligence .................................. 32 Skills, Rules and Knowledge ................................................................................ 37 Decision-Making Theory ...................................................................................... 39 Novice Decision Makers ....................................................................................... 42 Emotions in Decision Making .............................................................................. 47 Self-Efficacy and Decision Making ...................................................................... 54 Heuristic Decision Making ................................................................................... 56 Naturalistic Decision Making ............................................................................... 59 Related Literature ............................................................................................................. 64 Differences Between Experienced and Novice Decision Makers ........................ 66 Studies in Maritime Decision Making .................................................................. 67 Summary ........................................................................................................................... 74 CHAPTER THREE: METHODS ................................................................................................. 76 Overview ........................................................................................................................... 76 Design ............................................................................................................................... 76 Research Questions ........................................................................................................... 77 Setting ............................................................................................................................... 77 Participants ........................................................................................................................ 78 Procedures ......................................................................................................................... 79 The Researcher's Role ......................................................................................................