2023 Summer Lecture Series
What a Decade of Research Has Taught Me About Team Performance in Space
Speaker: Shawn Burke, University of Central Florida
NASA is increasingly moving towards an ultimate goal of sending crews beyond low-earth orbit. Most recently focusing on the Artemis set of missions and the creation of a Gateway that sets the stage for future missions to Mars. Future missions to Mars are estimated to last approximately 2-3 years with much of that time spent in transit. During this time crew members will be required to operate effectively, both individually and as a team. While we know much about the factors contributing to team effectiveness, much of this work has been conducted outside the context of isolated, confined environments, such as spaceflight. While the complexity present in spaceflight has long been recognized (isolation, confinement, communication lags), the last decade has seen a call for research to understand the challenges that long distance exploration presents in terms of team dynamics (e.g., interdependent and collaborative work). The ultimate aim of this work is to provide NASA with knowledge that can be used to develop countermeasures and interventions for such crews. In this vein, we have been funded by NASA for the past nine years to examine issues related to team dynamics within the context of long-distance space exploration, with a specific focus on team leadership, team roles, culture, and interpersonal relationships. Within this presentation we will discuss a subset of what we have learned as well as potential challenges that arise when conducting research in this area and a way forward for those interested in conducting research in this context.
Speaker Bio
Dr. C. Shawn Burke is a Research Professor and Director of the TRACE lab at the Institute for Simulation and Training, University of Central Florida. Her expertise includes teams and their leadership, team adaptability, team training, measurement, evaluation, and team effectiveness. Dr. Burke has published over 90 journal articles and book chapters related to the above topics and has presented/had work accepted at over 200 peer-reviewed conferences. Dr. Burke has received funding from the following agencies: Army Research Institute, Army Research Laboratory, Office of Naval Research, Army Research Office, National Science Foundation, Gulf Oil Research Program, and NASA. Most recently, Dr. Burke has been funded by NASA to investigate issues related to team leadership, team roles, team cognition, and cultural diversity within the context of teams operating in isolated, confined environments (e.g., long duration space exploration) with an eye towards fostering resiliency within such teams. All of the above work is conducted with an interest in team leadership and the training of teams operating in complex environments.
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The Summer Lecture Series is sponsored by UCF’s Cognitive Sciences Program
For more information, please contact Dr. Stephen M. Fiore at sfiore@ucf.edu
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