Selection of air traffic controllers : complexity, requirements, and public interest.

Abstract : The essays in this technical report represent presentations made as part of a symposium entitled Selection of Air Traffic Controllers: Complexity, Requirements, and Public Interest. The symposium was presented at the 98th Annual convention of the American Psychological Association, August 10-14, 1990, in Boston, MA. The presentations address the diverse process of valid selection for a highly demanding occupation in the career Federal civil service: the air traffic control specialist. Although the military services and a growing number of colleges and universities provide training in air traffic control, the Federal Aviation Administration has up to now maintained fairly strict and restricted access to most of the required selection and training for this highly visible job whose occupants are perceived to hold the nation's air traffic and safety in their hands. Each of the accompanying reports discusses a different component of the selection process for air traffic controllers.