Human factors in engineering Part Iߞ Man in the man-made environment

This introductory article describes something of the origin, setting, and evolution of human factors engineering as an organized discipline, and provides an overview of some of its major ramifications. It finds that despite the parochial military auspices under which the work began, HFE now encompasses a bewildering diversity of subjects and aims. It traces the development of the man-machine system concept (central to much human factors thinking), discusses the comparative roles of psychology and engineering, and, in the broadest sense, discusses the role of the human factors engineer vis-à-vis the question of man in the man-made environment. In conclusion, it asks whether or not there may be more to the HFE "name" problem than meets the eye.