As technology expands, as airplanes become faster and airways more crowded, as Naval battleships become more lethal, as decisions to launch or not launch a space shuttle become more complex, the demands imposed by these systems increase. Those who work in these settings face an environment in which they must perform under more time pressure and under greater task load, in which stress is more prevalent, and in which the consequences of poor performance are more critical than ever before.

This book is about stress and performance. It is not about stress-related disorders, clinical interventions, or coping. Most books on stress invariably devote a considerable amount of pages to disordered behavior, illness, and treatment, and yet there are typically precious few pages devoted to performance and effectiveness under stress. This work is meant to fill this gap.

The primary characteristic that distinguishes this volume from other related texts is its specific focus on how stress impacts performance and on interventions to overcome these effects.