The Common Operational Picture as Collective Sensemaking

Abstract

The common operational picture is used to overcome coordination and information management problems during emergency response. Increasingly, this approach is incorporated in more advanced information systems. This is rooted in an ‘information warehouse’ perspective, which implies information can be collected, sorted and exchanged in an accessible and univocal form. In practice, however, professionals interpret similar information differently. Therefore, we focus on how emergency responders develop collective sensemaking from information. We employ a ‘trading zone’ perspective, in which information is negotiated, to study information management in an ethnographic study of disaster exercises in the Netherlands. Our analysis shows how professionals attribute different meanings to information that distorts the coordination process. We end by stressing the importance of actionable knowledge and reflexivity.

A Common Operational Picture in Support of Situational Awareness for Efficient Emergency Response Operations

“…A major milestone was the deployment of a large group display to facilitate the development of SA in military command posts Deschamps, et al [107]. However, as Wolbers and Boersma [17] suggest, a single definition of a COP does not exist both in the operations field and the literature. Copeland [108] stresses that disagreements exist in terms of COP considerations as it is treated as a product, process or operating environment.…”

“…In addition, the growing attention on the improvement of the protection from natural hazards in Europe and beyond, led to an increasing demand for information sharing [16]. In order to overcome the information management and dissemination problems, the emergency response organizations support the employment of more advanced and better equipped information systems derived from the logic of network enabled capabilities [17,18]. Such systems should assist emergency response stakeholders to achieve shared situational awareness by deploying a Common Operational Picture [17,19,20].…”

“…In order to overcome the information management and dissemination problems, the emergency response organizations support the employment of more advanced and better equipped information systems derived from the logic of network enabled capabilities [17,18]. Such systems should assist emergency response stakeholders to achieve shared situational awareness by deploying a Common Operational Picture [17,19,20]. Having shared situational awareness, the responding organizations can dynamically understand "what is going on" while their subsequent decisions and actions highly depend on it.…”

“…In short, emergency response organizations still struggle with information sharing, communication and coordination [10,17,[21][22][23]. The unforeseen, dynamic and complex nature of an emergency in which multiple groups of professionals need to cooperate is seen by various scholars (e.g.…”

De samenhang tussen fysieke en sociale veiligheid in theorie en praktijk

“…common operational picture) van een crisissituatie ontstaat, wordt hierbij vaak als een belangrijk aspect gezien (e.g. Wolbers & Boersma 2013). Ook informatiedeling en het omgaan met verschillen in werkwijzen, organisatiecultuur en verschillende doelstellingen wordt genoemd als een belangrijke factor in het verbeteren van de bestrijding van incidenten (e.g.…”