Latent human error

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A Latent human error is a human error which is likely to be made due to systems or routines that are formed in such a way that humans are disposed to making these errors. Latent human error is a term used in safety work and accident prevention, especially in aviation, to describe

By gathering data about errors made, then collating, grouping and analyzing them, it can be determined whether a disproportionate amount of similar errors are being made. If this is the case, a contributing factor may be disharmony between the respective systems/routines and human nature or propensities. The routines or systems can then be analyzed, potential problems identified, and amendments made if necessary, in order to prevent future errors, incidents or accidents.