Regulating Risk: Implications of the Challenger Accident†

This analysis describes how the NASA organization contributed to the loss of the Challenger on January 28, 1986. The competitive environment, NASA organization characteristics (its structure, processes, and transactions), and the regulatory environment all influenced the decision to proceed with the launch. To be effective, strategies to control, change, or eliminate undesireable behavior should address the cause of that behavior. Understanding how organizations contribute to technical system accidents leads to the conclusion that efforts to reduce accidents in risky technological systems must include the organizations that produce them. Suggestions for policy aimed at curtailing organizational-technical system accidents are discussed.