In their paper ‘The science of human factors: separating fact from fiction’, Russ et al present a description of the human factors (HF) discipline, and discuss several cases where the science of HF has been misapplied in healthcare.1

On examining some of the examples of misapplication they provide, it became apparent that in most cases the term ‘human factors’ was used to describe factors relating to human behaviour (eg, communication) rather than the scientific discipline.2 ,3 The research did not purport to adopt an HF methodology or stance. Are these really misconceptions about HF science?

Russ et al also provide examples …