Improving the Standard Risk Matrix using STPA

Nancy Leveson

doi:10.56094/jss.v55i2.44

Authors

Nancy Leveson Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.56094/jss.v55i2.44

Keywords:

risk matrix, STPA, STAMP

Abstract

This paper first discusses the limitations of the standard risk matrix. It then suggests some changes to the risk matrix and its use to improve the accuracy of the results.

Author Biography

Nancy Leveson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Nancy G. Leveson is an American specialist in system and software safety and a Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT, United States.

Leveson gained her degrees (in computer science, mathematics and management) from UCLA, including her PhD in 1980. Previously she worked at University of California, Irvine and the University of Washington as a faculty member. She has studied safety-critical systems such as the Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) for the avoidance of midair collisions between aircraft and problems with the Therac-25 radiation therapy machine.

Leveson has been editor of the journal IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering. She has held memberships in the ACM, IEEE Computer Society, System Safety Society, and AIAA. (from Wikipedia)

References

Rasmussen, Jens. "Risk Management in a Dynamic Society: A Modeling Problem," Safety Science, Vol. 27, Is-sues 2-3, 183-213, 1997. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0925-7535(97)00052-0 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0925-7535(97)00052-0

Lauridsen, K., I. Kozine, F. Markert, A. Amendola, M. Christou and M. Fiori. "Assessment of Uncertainties in Risk, 2002," Assessment of Uncertainties in Risk Analysis of Chemical Establishments, Risø National Laboratory, Roskilde, Denmark, Risø-R-1344(EN), 2002.

Leveson, Nancy. Safeware: System Safety and Computers, Addison-Wesley, New York, 1995. https://doi.org/10.1145/202709

Abrecht, B., D. Arterburn, D. Horney, J. Schneider, B. Abel and N. Leveson. "A New Approach to Hazard Analysis for Rotorcraft," AHS Technical Specialists' Meeting on the Development, Affordability, and Qualification of Complex Systems, Huntsville Alabama, February 9 - 10, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/114753

Abrecht, Blake. Systems Theoretic Process Analysis Applied to an Off-Shore Supply Vessel Dynamic Positioning System, S.M. Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics Dept., 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/104618

Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation. "Safety Assessment Report for the UH-60M Upgrade Aircraft, Document Number SER-703655," January 3, 2012.

Cox, Anthony. "What's Wrong with Risk Matrices," Risk Analysis, Vol. 28, Issue 2, 497-512, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1539-6924.2008.01030.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1539-6924.2008.01030.x

Kahneman D and A. Tversky. "On the Psychology of Prediction," Psychological Review, Vol. 80, Issue 4, 237-51, 1973. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0034747 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/h0034747

Kahneman, D., P. Slovic and A. Tversky. Judgment under Uncertainty: Heuristics and Biases, Cambridge Uni-versity Press, New York, 1982. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511809477 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511809477

Leveson, Nancy. Engineering a Safer World, MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2012. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/8179.001.0001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/8179.001.0001

Castilho, Diogo Silva. A Systems-based Model and Processes for Integrated Safety Management Systems (I-SMS), Ph.D. Dissertation, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics Dept. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/124172