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Submissions Welcome for the 2015 Human Factors Prize

Papers on this year's topic may be uploaded between June 1 and July 1. Please see below for more details.

About the 2015 Prize Topic:  
The topic for the 2015 Human Factors Prize is HF/E Research in Sustainability/Resilience. We seek articles that describe research pertaining to sustainable development that goes beyond a single human lifespan and instead focuses on future generations. Consideration should be given to the interaction between humans and systems over the course of the next few decades and beyond.


Sustainability/resilience is broadly defined as a branch of study that focuses on long-term preservation of vital global resources with the goal of reducing consumption to protect the needs of future generations. It is the ability for a complex system to adapt and thrive in the face of constant change and uncertainty. Current research in this area includes energy, transportation, agriculture, and climate change.

Papers are invited that, among other things,

• identify the impact of HF/E in sustainable systems and processes;
• develop and test strategies, models, and design protocols that combine HF/E with sustainability/resilience;
• take a global resilience perspective;
• describe innovative and proactive safety in resilience; and/or
• demonstrate HF/E influence on organizational or community resilience.

Suitable sample HF/E research topics may include, but are not limited to

• Automation and robotics
• Biomechanical systems/tools
• Building/facility design
• Climate change
• Consumer product design
• Emergency response
• Energy generation/distribution
• Environmental design
• Food production
• Health care/medicine
• Information architecture/dissemination
• Infrastructure resilience
• Macroergonomics and the environment
• Manufacturing systems
• Simulation
• Surface, sea, and space systems/transportation
• Software systems/services (e.g., finance, security)
• Water distribution/use
• Waste reduction/management

Exemplar articles from previous issues of Human Factors include the following:

• Risk, Human Error, and System Resilience: Fundamental Ideas, Thomas B. Sheridan, June 2008, Volume 50, Number 3, pp. 418-426
• With Eloquence and Humanity? Human Factors/Ergonomics in Sustainable Human Development, Dave Moore and Tim Barnard, December 2012, Volume 54, Number 6, pp. 940-951
• Water and Coffee: A Systems Approach to Improving Coffee Harvesting Work in Nicaragua, Barbara A. Silverstein, Stephen S. Bao, Steven Russell, and Kate Stewart, December 2012, Volume 54, Number 6, pp. 925-939

We are not seeking examples that describe how HF/E or usability research has been applied to the design of sustainable or resilient systems or processes, which may be more suitable for a venue such as Ergonomics in Design. If you are not certain your topic relates to the theme of the 2015 Human Factors Prize, please contact Lois Smith (lois@hfes.org).

Submissions (research articles or extended multi-phase studies are welcome) must adhere to the policies of general submissions of Human Factors. This includes length restrictions, originality, and formatting.

Eligibility: 
Submissions must cover original (unpublished) research in the topical area and comply with the requirements in the Human Factors Instructions for Authors. Review articles are not eligible for the Prize. Any researcher is eligible to submit relevant work; membership in HFES is not required. The winning submission, along with other acceptable submissions, will be published in Human Factors.

Where to Submit:
All submissions must be uploaded to the Human Factors Manuscripts site.

Deadline for Submissions:
Submissions must be received beginning on Monday, June 1, and no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, July 1, 2015.