What you need to know to construct a model using the FRAM
A short introduction to the Functional Resonance Analysis Method.
The basic principles of the FRAM.
How to use the FRAM to build a model and then analysing an event or a future scenario.
Strengths and weaknesses of the FRAM.
A FRAM glossary.
The meaning of FRAM.
Publications about the FRAM.
Questions and Answers about the FRAM and how to use it.
The FRAMily.
Home
Since a FRAM model is a representation of the functions that are needed for everything – or ‘everyday’ performance – to succeed, it is essential that the analysis team knows – or can find out – how the system usually functions. This means access to domain experts, preferably people with a significant work experience. If possible, they should be part of the analysis team. If that is not possible, there should at least be free access to them.
In addition to people with practical experience from working in the system, it may also be useful to have access to knowledge about the system design. This can be on many levels, depending on the nature and scope of the analysis. Design knowledge is especially important in the case of a proactive FRAM analysis (risk assessment), there may be little or no practical experience available in such cases.
In order to assess the potential and actual variability, it is useful to have knowledge about human factors in general, about socio-technical systems, about the specific technologies that are involved, and about risk assessment in general. For a retrospective analysis it is obviously also important to have as much information available about what happened. That should preferably be ‘raw’ data rather than an accident investigation report, since an investigation report necessarily represents a specific filter or perspective. (This has been described in more detail by the What-You-Look-For-Is-What-You-Find or WILFYWIF principle.)
Finally, it is also useful to have someone with experience in making a FRAM analysis, or at least an accident analysis or risk assessment. But since the FRAM is the method of the analysis, some experience – and preferably much experience – with the method is an obvious advantage.
