To Certify or Not to Certify

BY JOHN W. SENDERS & KELLY HARWOOD <:) NeE UPON A TIME, the test of any person's competence was the workplace. People did what was necessary to show competence, thereby rising through the ranks from apprentice to master. Accordingly, "certification" of the quality of one's work was achieved through demonstration of competence. As codifiable methods of training arose, it became possible to quantify and certify performance through a formal process that did not necessarily require demonstration of actual job performance. Formal certification became an assurance to the public that the individual performing a service was qualified to do so. But is certification really an assurance of qualification? By way of analogy to Gresham's Law (which basically asserts that bad money drives out good), formality drives out reality. In the case of certification, the degree or certificate (the formality) may assume more importance than one's competence (the reality). The Board of Certification in Professional Ergonomics (BCPE) is setting up a certification process that, it is hoped, will avoid the potential pitfalls of certification. Nevertheless it remains the collective responsibility of ergonomists and human factors practitioners to ensure the quality and integrity of the field. To apply for certification, an applicant must have at least a master's degree in ergonomics or a closely related field and seven years of demonstrable experience in the practice of ergonomics. Until the end of 1993, individuals can complete an extensive application that focuses on educational background and professional work samples. An applicant must demonstrate competency in at least two of the three phases of system development: analysis, design, and test and evaluation. There is a nonrefundable $200 fee to apply for certification and a $75 yearly renewal fee. According to BCPE's executive director, most of this money will go toward the development of a test that will be instituted after the grand fathering period. The test is expected to be patterned after certification in other engineering fields.