Maritime Psychology: Research in Organizational & Health Behavior at Sea

This first-of-its-kind volume assembles current research on psychosocial issues and behavioral and safety concerns inherent in life and careers at sea. Focusing mainly on the commercial maritime transport sector, it sets out the basic concepts of maritime psychology in the contexts of health and occupational psychology and illustrates more expansive applications across nautical domains. A systems perspective and detailed case studies spotlight unique challenges to mariners’ work performance, personal and environmental health and safety; it also provides support for psychometric assessment of seafarers, and describes emerging uses for the healing properties of the sea and sailing. The book is a springboard for continued research and practice development, further interaction between psychology and the maritime world, and the continued broadening and deepening of the field. Among the topics covered: Positive psychology and wellbeing at sea. Transferring learning across safety critical industries. Occupational stress in seafarers. The psychology of ship architecture and design. Motion sickness susceptibility and management at sea. Risk communication during a maritime disaster. Written with clarity and nuance reflecting the vastness of marine experience, Maritime Psychology will be of interest to lecturers, researchers, and students of occupational and health psychology and maritime science, and to social and health scientists and practitioners in these and related fields.

About the Author

Prof Malcolm MacLachlan, is Professor of Global Health and Director of Research in the School of Psychology, Trinity College Dublin. He is Associate Director of the Centre for Global Health, and a member of the Centre for Innovative Human Systems, at Trinity College Dublin. He has published over 20 books, including 15 edited volumes with various publishers (e.g. Springer , Wiley, Routledge, Palgrave-MacMillan, Churchill Livingstone). His research interests are in the application of organisational and health psychology to global health issues. He has recently developed an interest in maritime psychology. This has included facilitating the School of Psychology at Trinity exchanging an MOU with the National Maritime College of Ireland; attending conferences on seafarer research (Cardiff, 2011) and the International Maritime Society Conference (Odessa, 2012); as well as gaining sea time on merchant navy vessels, during 2011-2013. He is the lead author on a recently published reviewof maritime health in the International Maritime Health journal and of a chapter on maritime health and organisational psychology in the 2nd edition of the Textbook of Maritime Medicine (2014). He has been invited to deliver a Keynote Address at the next International Maritime Society Conference in Bergin, Norway, in June 2015.