Assessing professional cultural differences between airline pilots and air traffic controllers

Past studies have found that values and attitudes influenced by national culture remain detectable in airline pilots, even after equalisation by training and organisational exposure. There is however insufficient research to ascertain if this relative strength of nationally-determined traits is because national culture is in itself change-resistant, or if it is because professional pilot training and international airline environments lack the power to impel shifts in cultural behaviour. Using a survey with items imported from the Flight Management Attitudes Questionnaire and the ATC Safety Questionnaires, this study compares the non-technical values and attitudes of pilots (n = 21) and air traffic controllers (n = 13) from the same national cultural background to examine whether the dissimilar pilot and ATC professional and organisational experiences bring about detectable changes in nationally-determined traits. It was discovered that professional and organisational exposure affected hierarchical relations between superiors and subordinates, levels of concern towards automation usage, and the desire for high earnings and career advancement. An understanding of how certain non-technical skills are changed by professional and organisational exposure has the potential to change training, influence equipment designs, and highlight issues in cross-cultural and cross-profession communications.