Seagull Launches Online Psychometric Testing Tool

Computer-based training specialist Seagull AS is launching an online version of APRO, the psychometric ability test tool aimed specifically at seafarers, that the company says will address what could be the shipping industry’s ‘Achilles heel’ where safe practices are concerned.

The past decade has seen significant progress in developing shipping’s safety culture, with the introduction of more sophisticated technology and improved procedures designed to prevent accidents at sea. However, Seagull believes that too little emphasis has been placed on the ability of people onboard to handle these new safety systems and procedures.

Seagull training content director, Captain Bjarke Jakobsen, says, “It is fine to develop technical solutions and procedures, but what about the people who operate and implement them? Shipping companies need to know if their onboard staffs are capable of absorbing information and following procedures in a way that has the desired safety outcome.”

APRO was initially developed as a psychometric ability test in the mid-1980s in a project led by the Norwegian Marine Technology Research Institute and supported by the University of Oslo, DNV and the Norwegian Shipping Association. Working with Professor Roald Bjorklund, of The University of Oslo’s Department of Psychology, who was part of the original research and development team, Seagull has upgraded the APRO test tool and modified it so that it can be undertaken online.

Professor Bjorklund says, “It is important to recognise that APRO is a very specific tool that allows companies to find out how people react in safety related areas, measuring the time they take to do tasks and the level of accuracy and the mistakes they might make, for instance. Unlike some other psychometric tests, APRO is designed to help select people who are able to act in the right way when safety is critical.”

Professor Bjorklund welcomes the advances that have been made through the partnership with Seagull. He adds, “This is an important step forward and what Seagull has done with APRO is very impressive, using modern IT to allow the tests to be used on different types of computer screens and most importantly online. Results can be kept remotely, rather than on a local computer, and the results evaluated over a period of time, for instance comparing them with a candidate’s real life performance onboard ship.”

Seagull expects the online APRO test will be a valuable recruitment tool, especially when recruiting cadets and junior officers, and also as part of the promotion process. It could also be used to measure capabilities at set intervals to ensure there has been no deterioration in a crew member’s performance. Furthermore APRO could be employed after accidents as part of the investigation process to determine if mental ability played a part in the incident.

APRO is suitable for shipping companies of all types, but could be especially useful for tanker operators, who have to comply with Tanker Management and Self Assessment (TMSA) requirements. TMSA stipulates that techniques such as simulator training and computer-based or psychometric test assessment tools must be in place to confirm competence for the job before employment.