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Psychosocial issues in space: results from Shuttle/MirImportant psychosocial issues involving tension, cohesion, leader support, and displacement of negative emotions were evaluated in a 4 1/2-year study involving five U.S. and four Russian Shuttle/Mir space missions. Weekly mood and group climate questionnaires were completed by five U.S. astronauts, eight Russian cosmonauts, and 42 U.S. and 16 Russian mission control subjects. There were few findings that supported our hypothesized changes in tension, cohesion, and leader support in crew and ground subjects using various time models, although crewmembers reported decreasing leader support in the 2nd half of the missions, and astronauts showed some evidence of a novelty effect in the first few weeks. There was no evidence suggesting a 3rd quarter effect among crewmembers on any of the 21 subscales evaluated. In contrast, there was strong evidence to support the hypothesized displacement of tension and negative emotions from crewmembers to mission control personnel and from mission control personnel to management. There were several significant differences in response between Americans vs. Russians, crewmembers vs. mission control personnel, and subjects in this study vs. people in comparable groups on Earth. Subject responses before, during, and after the missions were similar, and we did not find evidence for asthenia in space. Critical incidents that were reported generally dealt with events on-board the Mir and interpersonal conflicts, although most of the responses were from a relatively small number of subjects. Our findings have implications for future training and lead to a number of countermeasures.
Document ID
20040088436
Acquisition Source
Johnson Space Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Kanas, N.
(University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and VA Medical Center San Francisco CA, United States)
Salnitskiy, V.
Grund, E. M.
Weiss, D. S.
Gushin, V.
Bostrom, A.
Kozerenko, O.
Sled, A.
Marmar, C. R.
Date Acquired
August 21, 2013
Publication Date
June 1, 2001
Publication Information
Publication: Gravitational and space biology bulletin : publication of the American Society for Gravitational and Space Biology
Volume: 14
Issue: 2
ISSN: 1089-988X
Subject Category
Aerospace Medicine
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAS9-19411
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other
Keywords
short duration
long duration
STS Shuttle Project
Flight Experiment
Mir Project
NASA Discipline Space Human Factors
Non-NASA Center
NASA Experiment Number 9401628
manned

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