The Psychological Health of Airline Pilots: A Flight Deck Crew’s Perceptions and Willingness to Fly by Jason Charles Herkimer Bachelor of Aeronautical Science Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University 1999 Master of Aeronautical Science Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University 2004 A dissertation submitted to the College of Aeronautics Florida Institute of Technology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Aviation Sciences Melbourne, Florida December, 2017 © Copyright 2017 Jason Charles Herkimer All Rights Reserved The author grants permission to make single copies We the undersigned committee hereby recommend that the attached document be accepted as fulfilling in part the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Aviation Sciences. “The Psychological Health of Airline Pilots: A Flight Deck Crew’s Perceptions and Willingness to Fly” by Jason Charles Herkimer _________________________________________________ Deborah S. Carstens, Ph.D. Professor, College of Aeronautics Graduate Program Chair Dissertation Major Advisor _________________________________________________ John Deaton, Ph.D. Professor, College of Aeronautics ________________________________________________ Michael A. Gallo, Ph.D. Professor, College of Aeronautics _________________________________________________ Heidi Hatfield Edwards, Ph.D. Professor, School of Arts and Communications _________________________________________________ Korhan Oyman, Ph.D. Dean, College of Aeronautics Abstract TITLE: The Psychological Health of Airline Pilots: A Flight Deck Crew's Perceptions and Willingness to Fly AUTHOR: Jason Charles Herkimer MAJOR ADVISOR: Deborah S. Carstens, Ph.D. Pilots have an image of bravado and charisma which includes that of a hardened, unemotional professional. What happens when the inevitable hardship occurs to a pilot? In the past, physical attributes were highly sought after in the recruitment of pilots. Eventually, pilots can and will suffer from the same psychological stressors as the general population. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect stigmatizing attitudes and psychological treatment of pilots have on a flight deck crew’s willingness to fly. The current study incorporated several different methodologies including a between subjects true experimental, an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), an explanatory correlational, and an attribute-treatment interaction (ATI) design. A regression analysis found that psychological treatment was significant in determining willingness to fly among flight crew. An ANCOVA found that there is a significant interaction between mental illness stigma and psychological treatment. An ATI analysis indicated there were many interactions between the targeted variables with a significant interaction between mental illness stigma and willingness iii to fly. A hierarchical regression analysis and a stepwise regression analysis found that age and stigma were significant variables. Findings were consistent with Stickney et al. (2012), Corrigan and Watson (2007), and Feldman and Crandall’s (2007) findings The current study did not support the findings in Corrigan and Rüsch’s (2011), Link et al.’s (1997), Link and Phelan’s (2004; 2014), Allport’s (1954), Lauber et al.’s (2004), Blundell et al.’s (2016), or Kraemer et al.’s (2015) studies. The study’s findings provided evidence that pilots should be encouraged to report their psychological health. iv Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................... iii List of Figures ......................................................................................................... ix List of Tables ........................................................................................................... x Acknowledgments ................................................................................................. xii Dedication ............................................................................................................. xiv Chapter 1: Introduction ............................................................................................ 1 Background and Purpose ............................................................................ 1 Background ...................................................................................... 1 Purpose ............................................................................................ 6 Definition of Terms ..................................................................................... 9 Research Questions and Hypotheses ......................................................... 14 Research Questions ....................................................................... 14 Research Hypotheses ..................................................................... 15 Study Design ............................................................................................. 16 Significance of the Study ........................................................................... 18 Study Limitations and Delimitations ......................................................... 18 Limitations ..................................................................................... 19 Delimitations ................................................................................. 20 Chapter 2: Review of Related Literature ............................................................... 23 Introduction .............................................................................................. 23 v Overview of underlying theory ................................................................. 23 Review of past research studies ................................................................. 38 Summary and study implications .............................................................. 56 Chapter 3: Methodology ........................................................................................ 58 Population and Sample .............................................................................. 58 Population ...................................................................................... 58 Sample and sample representation ................................................ 59 Power analysis ............................................................................... 62 Instrumentation .......................................................................................... 63 Procedures ................................................................................................. 69 Research methodology .................................................................. 69 Human subjects research ............................................................... 70 Study implementation .................................................................... 70 Threats to internal validity ............................................................. 71 Treatment verification and fidelity ................................................ 78 Data Analysis ............................................................................................. 80 Description of independent and dependent variables .................... 80 Inferential statistics ........................................................................ 81 Chapter 4: Results .................................................................................................. 83 Introduction ............................................................................................... 83 Descriptive Statistics ................................................................................. 84 vi Inferential Statistics ................................................................................... 97 Overview ....................................................................................... 97 Preliminary analysis ...................................................................... 98 Primary analyses .......................................................................... 107 Results of Hypothesis Testing ................................................................. 127 Chapter 5: Conclusions, Implications, and Recommendations ........................... 130 Summary of Study ................................................................................... 130 Summary of Findings .............................................................................. 133 Conclusions and Inferences ..................................................................... 147 Implications ............................................................................................. 153 Implications relative to theory ..................................................... 153 Implications relative to prior research ......................................... 156 Implications for aviation practice ................................................ 163 Generalizability, Limitations, and Deliminations ................................... 165 Generalizability ........................................................................... 165 Study limitations and deliminations ............................................ 166 Recommendations for Research and Practice ......................................... 170 Recommendations for research relative to study limitations .......................................................................... 170 Recommendations for research relative to study delimitations