Mental workload, situational awareness, and safety culture in high-speed craft navigation: A multidimensional analysis of Turkish bridge officers

Abstract

This study examines the interrelationship of mental workload (MWL), situational awareness (SA), and safety culture (SC) within high-speed craft (HSC) navigation, focusing on certified Turkish bridge officers. Data were collected between 1 June and 31 December 2024 using purposive and snowball sampling techniques. A total of 38 certified HSC navigators operating under the Turkish flag voluntarily participated in structured, interviewer-assisted surveys, yielding a 100 % response rate. The Revised NASA Task Load Index (RNASA-TLX), the Situational Awareness Rating Technique (SART), and the Nordic Occupational Safety Climate Questionnaire (NOSACQ-50) were employed to assess cognitive and organizational factors affecting navigational performance in high-tempo maritime environments. Descriptive analysis revealed that visual demand constituted the most significant MWL source, while perceived organizational safety- particularly managerial safety justice- scored lowest among SC dimensions. Notably, while SA and MWL were positively correlated in certain subdomains, multinomial logistic regression analysis found no statistically significant predictive relationships among MWL, SA, or SC. These findings suggest that the three core constructs’ interdependencies may be non-linear and shaped by context-sensitive or latent variables. The study concludes with implications for human-centered design and organizational safety policies aimed at fostering cognitive resilience in HSC bridge operations. Highlights Evaluates MWL–SA–SC linkages in high-fidelity HSC navigation environments. Visual interface overload is identified as the primary source of mental workload. Team cohesion and system trust significantly enhance situational awareness. Perceived safety culture varies with views on managerial safety justice. Regression results suggest non-linear links among MWL, SA, and SC.