The appropriateness of TACOM for a task complexity measure for emergency operating procedures of nuclear power plants – A comparison with OPAS scores

It is well known that complicated procedures frequently cause human performance related problems that can result in a serious consequence. Unfortunately a systematic framework to evaluate the complexity of procedures is very rare. For this reason Park et al. suggested a measure called TACOM (Task Complexity) which is able to quantify the complexity of tasks stipulated in procedures. In addition, it was observed that there is a significant correlation between averaged task performance time data and estimated TACOM scores. In this study, for an additional verification activity, TACOM scores are compared with operators’ performance data that are measured by Operator Performance Assessment System (OPAS). As a result, it is believed that TACOM scores seem to be meaningfully correlated with OPAS scores. Thus, it is reasonable to expect that the result of this study can be regarded as a supplementary evidence for supporting the fact that TACOM measure is applicable for quantifying the complexity of tasks to be done by operators.