Objective We searched for the application of usability in the literature with a focus on adoption, measurements employed, and demonstrated value. Five human factors domains served as a platform for our reflection, which included the last 20 years. Background As usability studies continue to accumulate, there has been only a little past reflection on usability and contributions across a variety of applications. Our research provides a background for general usability, and we target specific usability research subareas within transportation, aging populations, autistic populations, telehealth, and cybersecurity. Method “Usability” research was explored across five different domains within human factors. The goal was not to perform an exhaustive review but, rather, sample usability practices within several specific subareas. We focused on answering three questions: How was usability adopted? How was it measured? How was it framed in terms of value? Conclusion We found that usability is very domain specific. Usability benchmarking studies and empirical standards are rare. The value associated with improving usability ranged widely—from monetary benefits to saving lives. Thus, researchers are motivated to further improve usability practices. A number of data collection and interpretation challenges still call for solutions. Application Findings offer insight into the development of usability, as applied across a variety of subdomains. Our reflection ought to inform future theory development efforts. We are concerned about the lack of established benchmarks, which can help ground data interpretation. Future research should address this gap in the literature. We note that our findings can be used to develop better training materials for future usability researchers.

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Close calls in aviation are frequent occurrences. Many reports have described encounters with unmanned aerial vehicles or conflicts due to increasingly congested airspace. The Aviation Safety Reporting System, developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, contains many close call narratives. However, few theoretical frameworks facilitate analyses of close call reports. This article describes an examination of close calls within the ASRS over a three-year period (2014-2016). The authors analyzed 117 close call reports from the ASRS involving near-midair collisions. Using Bliss’s (2013) taxonomy, the reports were successfully analyzed in terms of category and severity level. Results indicated that nearly half of the close calls occurred during the approach phase of flight. Also, a disproportionate number of close calls were “Un-signaled” and “Event-Driven.” Report frequency was negatively associated with aircraft separation distance. Recommendations include modification of the close call taxonomy to account for events caused by lack of responding.

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