When the crew members did not feel well due to ear infections, they became 

 somewhat depressed. Buddy relationships changed with time, but intra-crew 

 hostilities were generally surpressed or directed against the topside 

 personnel. The aquanauts felt a strong need to escape into the water, but 

 they always felt that the habitat was home and security. 



TEKTITE II BEHAVIOR AND HABITABILITY RESEARCH 



As a direct result of the experience on TEKTITE I, it was decided that a 

 larger study using more aquanauts with more varied scientific and engineering 

 skills could provide useful information on the psychological characteristics 

 of the underwater station. Many of these findings could also apply to space 

 vehicles and their crews. Thus a human behavior and habitability research 

 program for TEKTITE II was developed with the following goals: 



- To evaluate behavioral dynamics of small groups during 

 missions in hostile environments 



- To perform research studies on crew selection, composition, 

 command structure and crew rotation 



- To study habitability preferences of aquanauts living and 

 working in confined quarters 



- To study the effects of unexpected perturbations on crew 

 behavior and performance 



- To determine the possible effects of nitrogen narcosis 

 on performance 



- To observe the effects of two-way video between the 

 habitat and "mission control " 



- Identify food preferences and acceptability of pre-packaged 

 foods . 



A main advantage of the TEKTITE II program was that a large number of volunteer 

 crews performed real-life work activities in the marine sciences. Their activi- 

 ties, interactions, and responses to confined living conditions provided useful 

 information on crew behavior. These data supplement those obtained in chamber 

 studies where the subjects engage in make-work tasks, and can abort on short 

 notice. The TEKTITE habitat and undersea environment provided a uniquely 

 advantageous analog for the study of small group dynamics and evolving social 

 structure of man assigned to an isolated vehicle similar to that which would 

 occur in future space stations. 



Under the chairmanship of Stanley Deutsch, a Behavioral and Habitability 

 Research Programs Planning Committee was established with membership from 

 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Navy and the Smith- 

 sonian Institution (Figure 1.) This Committee established program objectives 

 described above and developed a research strategy to meet the requirements of 

 the agencies interested in obtaining such data. 



VIII-3 



