Aerospace/Aviation (Neuro)psychology

The American College of Professional Neuropsychology

(ACPN)

Distance Learning presents:

Abstract:

Aviation psychology is a specialized area of applied psychology concerned with human behavior, cognition, emotion, and performance in aviation environments (American Psychological Association, 2018). Historically, the field developed alongside the rise of military and civilian aviation in the early twentieth century, with especially important advances during World War I and World War II as psychologists became involved in pilot selection, aptitude testing, training, fatigue, and human performance research (Koonce, 1984; Viteles, 1942). Over time, aviation psychology expanded beyond pilot selection into broader issues involving aeromedical certification, human factors, crew performance, decision-making, stress, fatigue, and operational safety (Federal Aviation Administration [FAA], n.d.-a; FAA, n.d.-b; Salas & Maurino, 2010).

An aviation psychologist may be defined as a psychologist with specialized knowledge of aviation operations, aviation safety, and aeromedical risk who applies psychological science to questions of fitness for duty, performance, selection, training, and operational safety (FAA, 2024a). In current practice, aviation psychologists and aviation neuropsychologists work across multiple domains. In civilian settings, they conduct FAA-related evaluations of pilots, air traffic control specialist applicants, and other airmen when psychiatric, psychological, or neurocognitive concerns may bear on aviation safety (FAA, 2024a, 2024b, 2024c). In military settings, aviation psychologists contribute to operational consultation, selection, performance enhancement, training optimization, mishap investigation, and specialized intervention services within aerospace medicine and aviation units (Department of the Air Force, 2025; Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, 2022). Their work may include assessment of personality, emotional functioning, judgment, stress tolerance, fatigue vulnerability, cognitive efficiency, and the likely operational significance of identified conditions (Bor et al., 2025; Caldwell & Caldwell, 2016; FAA, 2021, 2024b; Politano et al., 2022).

Despite its importance, aviation psychology faces several unresolved problems. One major issue involves norms and test interpretation in highly selected populations. For example, the MMPI-2 has been used in FAA screening of air traffic control specialist candidates for years, yet the field continues to wrestle with questions about older normative frameworks, defensiveness in applicant samples, and how best to interpret scores in unusually healthy, high-functioning populations (FAA, 2021). More broadly, aviation psychologists often must apply general psychological tests to specialized operational groups for whom normative comparators may be imperfect, thereby raising questions about construct validity, cut-scores, and aeromedical interpretation (Bor et al., 2025; Martinussen & Hunter, 2017).

A second challenge is the low-base-rate phenomenon: catastrophic aviation accidents are rare, which is ideal from a public safety standpoint but makes psychological prediction extremely difficult. In low-base-rate environments, even screening tools with reasonable psychometric properties may produce substantial false positives or still fail to identify the very small number of individuals who later become involved in severe safety events (FAA, 2021). This problem is compounded by the fact that aviation mishaps are generally multiply determined and often reflect interactions among human factors, operational demands, environmental stressors, and organizational influences rather than a single identifiable psychological cause (Shappell & Wiegmann, 2000; Wiegmann & Shappell, 2003).

A third challenge is conceptual: there is still no universally accepted definition of aeromedical significance, even though FAA guidance requires psychologists to comment on whether findings are clinically or aeromedically significant and relevant to aviation safety (FAA, 2024a, 2024b, 2024c). Related international work has similarly emphasized the need for better methods of determining the operational significance of mental health conditions in pilots and air traffic controllers (European Union Aviation Safety Agency, 2023). This lack of consensus can create variability in interpretation, especially when clinicians must translate psychological findings into practical judgments about risk, certification, and fitness for duty (Bor et al., 2025; Koglbauer & Biede-Straussberger, 2024).

Future directions for aviation psychology should include updated normative databases for aviation-specific populations, stronger validation studies for personality and neurocognitive measures used in pilot and controller evaluations, clearer consensus standards for defining aeromedical significance, and better models for linking psychological findings to real-world operational risk (Bor et al., 2025; European Union Aviation Safety Agency, 2023; FAA, 2021, 2024a). Additional research is especially needed on fatigue, shift work, automation monitoring, neurocognitive aging, recovery after mental health treatment, and the translation of clinical findings into defensible, evidence-based aeromedical decisions (Caldwell & Caldwell, 2016; FAA, n.d.-a; National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 1976; Orasanu et al., 2012). As aviation systems become more technologically advanced while remaining deeply dependent on human judgment, aviation psychology and neuropsychology will likely play an increasingly central role in protecting safety across civilian, military, and aerospace environments (Davis et al., 2021; FAA, n.d.-a; Johnston et al., 1994; Salas & Maurino, 2010).

Professional Biography:

Dr. Ryan R. Green, Ph.D., ABPP, is a board-certified clinical psychologist and fellowship-trained neuropsychologist specializing in aviation, aerospace, forensic, and clinical neuropsychology. He conducts aeromedical evaluations through his private practice, Aerospace Neuropsychology Services, and forensic evaluations through Green’s Neuropsychology and Consultation Services. His background includes military roles in neuropsychology, forensic psychology, SERE psychology, aeromedical psychology, and human factors, as well as supporting the special operations community. Dr. Green has published and presented in military, forensic, and aviation neuropsychology.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe the historical development and scope of aviation psychology and neuropsychology, including how the field evolved from early pilot selection and military applications into contemporary civilian, military, aeromedical, and safety-focused practice.

2. Identify the major roles and practice settings of aviation psychologists and aviation neuropsychologists, including the types of evaluations they perform, the populations they assess, and the operational, clinical, and safety questions they are asked to address.

3. Evaluate major current challenges and future directions in aviation psychology, including psychometric and norms-related concerns, the low-base-rate problem in predicting accidents or safety events, the lack of a universally accepted definition of aeromedical significance, and areas in which additional research is needed.

At this time, ACPN is not APA-approved for home study courses; therefore, this presentation will not be recorded or made available for later distribution. We apologize for any inconvenience. We are planning to pursue this option in the future.