Maritime Watchstanding Plans: Origins, Variants and Effectiveness

This book is the most comprehensive reference work available concerning (1) the genesis and history of maritime watchstanding and (2) more than a half-century of research concerning different watchstanding plans. The book includes assessments of more than 35 watchstanding plans that have been observed in civilian or military operations and/or studied in laboratories. Reference is made to 331 technical publications. My interest in creating this reference work stemmed from my involvement in several research investigations of fatigue and performance in the maritime environment across portions of four decades. I have also written about shiftwork scheduling and about fatigue as a contributor to the occurrences of accidents and incidents.

The book is divided into three sections. The first section summarizes available information about maritime watchstanding practices from ancient times through the 1800s. This historical summary includes relevant information about the development of the measurement of time, especially at sea. The second section provides reviews of watchstanding research literature and summarizes the objectives, methods, results, and lessons learned from my own and others' investigations of the effects of watchstanding plans on mental performance. In the third section, I have summarized about 25 years of recommendations for fatigue risk management systems (FRMS) for maritime operations, and then presented some concluding thoughts.