Posted: May 13th, 2023

IMPACT OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM MANAGEMENT

IMPACT OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM MANAGEMENT

STUDENT NAME
Degree Name
Year

Disclaimer: I hereby declare that this dissertation is my original work and has not been submitted before any institution for assessment purposes.

Abstract
The focus of this dissertation is to examine the impact of effective communication and bridge team management in the maritime sector. The project examines the level of communication and bridge team management aboard a vessel, the limitations that affect effective communication and team management, and measures that have been taken in establishing effective communication and team management in the maritime sector. The introduction chapter offers an in-depth knowledge regarding effective communication in the maritime sector. It contains the background and justification of why the project is important. The second chapter of the dissertation entails literature review. It offers vast knowledge on the issue of effective communication was collected through in-depth interviews, personal interviews, and observation of the crewmembers while in line of duty. The interviews revealed different methods of communication approached in different vessels to ensure safe voyage for those aboard. The respondents consisted of thirty people from different age groups. The level of communication aboard vessels is important for the overall safety of the people on board and cargo. Various barriers limit communication and affect how the receiver receives a message. Effective communication and effective bridge team management are important in ensuring the safety of the people aboard a vessel. It plays an important role in ensuring efficiency in the maritime sector.
Keywords: communication, maritime sector, bridge team management.

Acknowledgement
The research would not have materialized without the proper guidance, constructive criticism and feedback from my supervisors. Many thanks also goes to my fellow students whom played a key role in assisting get the information that acted as the foundation of this thesis. I would also like to thank my friends and family for the support they provided during the entire research process.

Abbreviations
BTM-Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment
HMI-Human Machine Interface
OOW-Officer on Watch
SMCP-Standard Marine Communication Phrases

Table of Contents

Abstract ii
Acknowledgement iii
Abbreviations iv
Table of Contents v
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY 1
JUSTIFICATION OF STUDY 2
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES 3
LIMITATIONS 4
DESCRIPTION OF THE STRUCTURE 4
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 5
LITERATURE REVIEW 5
CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 13
OVERVIEW 13
RATIONALE 13
RESEARCH DESIGN 13
METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION 14
RESPONDENTS 14
CHAPTER FOUR: EXAMINATION OF COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM ON BOARD 16
MAIN FINDINGS 16
STRENGTHS OF DATA 18
WEAKNESSES OF DATA 21
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED 22
CHAPTER FIVE: LIMITATIONS OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM MANAGEMENT 24
MAIN FINDINGS 24
Limitations of effective communication 24
Limitations of Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment 27
STRENGTH AND WEAKNESSES OF DATA 29
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED 30
CHAPTER SIX: ESTABLISHMENT OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND TEAM MANAGEMENT IN THE MARITIME SECTOR 33
INTRODUCTION 33
MAIN FINDINGS 34
STRENGTHS OF THE FINDINGS 36
WEAKNESSES OF THE FINDINGS 38
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED 39
CONCLUSION 40
CHAPTER SEVEN: ANALYSIS 42
EXAMINATION OF COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM ON BOARD 42
LIMITATIONS OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM MANAGEMENT 44
ESTABLISHMENT OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND TEAM MANAGEMENT IN THE MARITIME SECTOR 46
CHAPTER EIGHT: CONCLUSION 49
Reference List 51
Appendix A 58

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Effective communication and bridge team management are important in the maritime sector. An effective communication coupled with an effective bridge team can help ease the provision of services in the maritime sector (ADAIR 2009). Over the years, many several lapses in the bridge teams have often brought about many accidents in the marines. For a bridge team to be referred to as perfect, the team must practice effective communication. The two factors are wide, and knowledge for both of them is important in reducing the number of marine casualties. It is important to define the term communication to ease its understanding.
Communication is a dual process of reaching a mutual understanding whereby the participants not only exchange news, information, ideas, but also participate in the creation and sharing of meaning. Most people would also simply define it as the process of transferring given information from one location to another. In the world today, communication happens through some ways; therefore, there are various categories of communication. The categories of communication include verbal communication, non-verbal communication, written communication, and visualizations. Verbal communication can be in the form of telephone, radio, face-to-face, television, among others. Non-verbal communication can be in the form of gestures, body language, dressing, and actions. Written communication can be in the form of magazines, emails, books, newspapers, internet, among others. Lastly, visualizations can be in the form of charts, graphs, logos, maps, among others. All these forms of communication perform the function of transferring information from a given party to another.
A sender, a receiver, and medium are important components of the communication process. For communication to be termed successful, the three components must be involved. For a communication process to be termed effective, it has to meet some requirements that include a proper choice of an appropriate communication channel, passing the correct message to the receivers to avoid misinterpretations, and seeking feedback from the receivers to clarify any possible confusion. Effective communication plays an important role in the marine environment. Bridge teams and other staff members that work for institutions related to the marine environment must practice effective communication to ease the passage of information. Information of different types is passed in the marine environment. Some of these types of information have certain protocols to follow.
To ensure effective communication in the marine environment, the individuals involved in the communication have to get rid of some of the communication barriers that hinder effective communication. Some of these communication barriers include lack of focus, use of improper language, negative body language, premature assumptions, distracting environment, mixed messages, judgments that are based on preferences. There are various ways that the parties involved in the communication process can overcome the barriers. Suggestions include proper listening, choosing a suitable environment for relaying g the information, dispelling biases and assumptions, and choosing the correct body language. When the suggestions for overcoming the effective communication barriers are implemented in any environment, effective communication can be achieved. In cases where a bridge team observes effective communication, the chances of accidents occurrences can be minimized. Just like effective communication, bridge team management is an important aspect to consider in a marine environment (BAILEY & SWIFT 2004). It is important to provide quality training for bridge teams to help minimize any accidents that may occur during ship handling.
JUSTIFICATION OF STUDY
As stated, communication is a dual process that must involve the parties concerned. The sender passes in formation to the receiver through a medium in a two-way process (FAULKNER 1984). It is important to examine how effective communication can be achieved in consideration with the categories of communication. It is important to note that not all communication processes are successful. At times, a misunderstanding can occur during the communication process, and several communication barriers can bring this.
Effective communication, therefore, is a communication process whereby the parties involved in the exchange of information both play an active role in the process. In this type of communication, the speaker transmits the message to the receiver through a suitable medium and then ensures that the intended message is passed without having any barriers. During this process, the listener or the receiver must also play an active role in the process. The receiver takes in the message and synthesizes it. After the synthesis, the receiver can give feedback to the speaker. The process is a continuous one as both the parties must ensure that the intended message is passed. Effective communication is important in the relaying of information.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
The study sought to:
i. To discuss the importance of maritime English amongst bridge team onboard and ashore.
ii. To examine the communication level and bridge team management onboard.
iii. To identify the limitations of effective communication and bridge team management.
iv. To appraise measures in establishing effective communication and team management in the maritime sector.
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The bridge teams play an important role during ship maneuvering and emergencies. Equipping the bridge teams with sufficient information together with practicing effective communication can help ease ship operations. The dissertation, therefore, is concerned with the analysis of the roles effective communication and bridge team managements play in the maritime sector. During the examination of the roles of each of the aspects, their limitations will also be discussed with additional suggestions on how to counter the limitations. In a case where the bridge team management is practiced well, the result would be a bridge team that maintains situational awareness, acquires relevant information on time and through the correct channel, anticipates dangerous situations, undertakes the required contingency plans, values the need to recognize error chain development and monitors the progress vessel continuously.
LIMITATIONS
Several challenges were experienced during the research. The respondents mainly consisted of senior workers. The senior workers were mainly chosen due to their vast knowledge on team management and the importance of communication in ensuring safe travel. The participants were open providing a vast knowledge in the area of study. However, there was limitation in the data provided because the junior workers were not given a platform to air their views on the topic. Another limitation encountered during the study was the fact that most of the crewmembers worked during odd hours including the night making it hard for collection of data. During this time, there was restricted entourage aboard the vessels due to concerns about security. Hence, there was lack of an in-depth point of view especially from bridge members working during the night.
DESCRIPTION OF THE STRUCTURE
The dissertation begins by reviewing the required literature and the methodologies concerned. Under this section, the research techniques used in the establishment of the information about the topic of concern will be justified. It will also review the data collected during the research for the topic. The review of the data is important in the validation of the information collected on effective communication and bridge team management in the maritime sector. The dissertation will also provide a discussion of the topic by considering an examination, analysis, and discussion of effective communication and bridge team management. During the discussion, the limitations associated with the two aspects will also be evaluated.

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
LITERATURE REVIEW
The major focus of this thesis is on the analysis of effective communication and bridge team management in the maritime sector. Different authors have highlighted several pieces of information about the two topics. The chapter, therefore, presents a review of the literature available that touches on effective communication and bridge team management. To be particular, literature that touches on aspects of effective communication such as communication barriers, ways to ensure proper communication, and the ways of overcoming the communication barriers, will be reviewed. The chapter will also review literature that has information on bridge team management. A review of the literature will ease the discussion and analysis of the findings that are summarized in later chapters. The chapter, therefore, will present an evaluation of the literature that has information on effective communication and bridge team management in the maritime sector.
Research on communication is cross-disciplinary (CAPUTO et al. 2003). The number of definitions that have a relationship towards each other can confirm this. Most of these definitions center around communication as a process that involves the passing of information between a sender and a receiver with a medium involved (ANDERSON 2015 – Research Paper Writing Help Service). Statistics show that there has been an increase in the search for the term communication on the internet over the least five years (HARGIE, DICKSON, & TOURISH 1999). The increase in the search has been attributed to the increased interest in effective communication in institutions (CLEARY 2003). Most people have realized that communication is an important aspect that should be accorded a lot of respect as far as the success of an institution is concerned (COLLINS 2009). After a thorough evaluation of the institutions that have given effective communication a higher priority than other aspects, it is evident that the institution’s standards may have improved in a way or another (FIELDING 2005). The improvement can be tied to the consideration of effective communication. Just as the definition states, effective communication involves the passing of information from the sender to the receiver through a medium and without any barrier (FIELDING 2005).
When there is effective communication in an institution, the desired information will reach its intended destination without facing any barriers or undergoing distortion (HUNT 1985). Effective communication, therefore, plays a vital role in most institutions in the world today (KIM et al. 2011). Several authors second this claim in their works of literature. It is also important to note that over the years, many people have often believed that so long as there is a sender, receiver, and a medium, then there is effective communication (MANDAL 2006 – Write a paper; Professional research paper writing service – Best essay writers). The notion explains why most institutions in the past failed to solve some of the problems they faced due to communication despite the existence of the aspects of communication. Most of these institutions never had enough information on the components of effective communication.
As MANDAL (2006 – Write a paper; Professional research paper writing service – Best essay writers), puts it, for communication to be termed effective, the sender and receiver must all participate via a suitable medium without barriers that may hinder the passing of the intended information. One can easily identify the definition of effective communication. Effective communication, therefore, must involve all the participants whereby each of them participates actively in the process (MCCONNELL 1993). Effective communication must be employed in a marine environment to help ease the flow of information between the workers (MONGE & CONTRACTOR 2003). The diagram below shows how the process of communication takes place.

Figure 1.1

According to CHANDLER & MUNDAY (2011), there are barriers that affect the flow of information from the receiver to the sender. The various, therefore, hinder effective communication (MORTENSEN 2008 – Affordable Custom Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay from Pro Writers). It is important to have information on the various barriers to effective communication. The knowledge of such barriers would help to ensure the flow of information between different parties is a success (BURNIE 1992). To ensure effective communication in the marine environment, the individuals involved in the communication have to get rid of some of the communication barriers that hinder effective communication (NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL (U.S.) 1960). Some of these communication barriers include lack of focus, use of improper language, negative body language, premature assumptions, distracting environment, mixed messages, judgments that are based on preferences (OKINO, TAMURA & FUJII 1998). Dealing with these barriers ensures effective communication among the bridge team members. SORGER (2009) claims that in every work environment, the people concerned should make sure that the communication barriers are avoided to ensure the exchange of the intended information.
Effective communication can be promoted through avoiding the communication barriers (HUNT 1985). There are various ways to ensure proper communication and they involve overcoming the communication barriers. The bridge team management advocates for an environment where the people involved practice cohesion. The cohesion can be practiced through proper communication between the team members. As WANDBERG (2001) claims, an environment with proper communication has a high chance of success. Some of the ways of overcoming communication barriers include proper listening, choosing a suitable environment for relaying the information, dispelling biases and assumptions, and choosing the correct body language (WARD 1999).
DICKIE (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay), defines Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment as the management of the human resources available to the navigator for a safe and efficient voyage. He identifies them as helmsman, lookout, and engine room watch. Additionally, he states that effective team management requires a clear definition of goals, means to achieve the defined goals, measures of progress towards the goals, constant awareness of the situation at hand, and open communication throughout the system. Moreover, it is necessary to define accountability and responsibility of every team member (NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL (U.S.) 1996). However, above all, there is need for external support.
STAFF (1900) describes Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment as the effective management and utilization of the available resources both human and technical for a safe completion of the voyage. According to the VANITA (2003), effective bridge team management focuses on the officers’ skills such as teambuilding, communication, leadership, decision making, resource management, and teamwork. Furthermore, it incorporates these skills into the organizational and regulatory management (BEAR 1974). The author further states that Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment addresses operational tasks, attitudes, stress, and risks that involve members of the team (GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MARITIME UNIVERSITIES & NIELSEN 2005). The pictures below show bridge team members under training.

Figure 1.2

Figure 1.3
BTM recognizes the need for job effectiveness, safety, and elements that are involved such as organizational, individual, and regulatory factors (BAILEY & SWIFT 2004). The elements should be anticipated and planning for them is necessary. Effective management begins with the voyage and continues until the end of the voyage (BOWDITCH 2002). Several objectives exist that an effective bridge team should aim to achieve (RANDALL 2013). They include sharing a common view by the team members of the intended passage and the provided procedures for the transit of the passage (DICKIE 2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay). Additionally, the team should clearly develop a detailed passage plan that can anticipate and manage the demands and risks of the workload (FISHER & FISHER 2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service. Custom Essay Services Cheap). Further, the team should set up appropriate manning levels and make contingency plans based on the workloads demands and risks they are expecting.
Also, effective management requires that the members should be assigned their roles and responsibilities, and they should be clearly stated for the effectiveness of the whole process (KANKI, HELMREICH & ANCA 2010 – Essay Writing Service: Write My Essay by Top-Notch Writer). Further, the author states that the team members should acquire all the information early and anticipate different situations including dangerous ones. Therefore, it is necessary for the management to involve all the team members in problem solving (BOWDITCH 2002). Also, BOWDITCH (2002) states that there is need for the team members to understand the chain of command and the way decisions and instructions are made and passed down the chain of command.
Effective team management incorporates teamwork (STAFF 1900). All the available materials and human resources are team approaches. According to CATO & BROWN (2003), bridge team members should be trained and be made aware of their responsibilities and ways to recognize the demands and risks of the workload. The training ensures that the members can handle every situation that comes their way. Weakness and lack of teamwork have been identified as the major causes of marine causalities in the world (GAULT & GAULT-HAZELWOOD-TETTENBORN 2003).To ensure effectiveness and reduce the number of these casualties, DICKIE (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay) suggests the need for good management and training of the team members. Proper management aboard a vessel ensures that the team continually monitors the progress of the vessel and is aware of every situation at hand. The result of these is a safe passage. The author further indicates that proper team training ensures that the team acquires all relevant information early, the workload is delegated in an appropriate manner, and the authority anticipates dangerous situations. Additionally, proper Bridge team management ensures that a team is not pre-occupied with minor technical problems losing the big picture in the process. SWIFT (1993) states that a well-trained team should focus on the big situation at hand, that is ensuring a safe voyage. UNITED STATES (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service. Custom Essay Services Cheap) states there is need to undertake appropriate contingency plans and recognize the development of an error chain. After recognizing this development, appropriate action is necessary to break this chain. Additionally, a well-managed team shares ideas, experiences, and thoughts. Communication is a great aspect that ensures that the team members achieve a safe passage and maintain effectiveness throughout a voyage (FAULKNER 1984).
Effective Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment is necessary for a bridge team to anticipate and respond in a correct manner to the changing situation aboard a vessel (IEEE PLANS 2004 & POSITION LOCATION AND NAVIGATION SYMPOSIUM 2004). INTERNATIONAL MARITIME ORGANIZATION (1999), states that effective Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment is a necessary element and involves the proper and successful utilization of all available resources including human and technical ones. The body indicates that such a team is necessary for the completion of the voyage safely. NATIONAL COASTAL ECOSYSTEMS TEAM & U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE (1984) There have been many cases where poor Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment has led to the loss of situational awareness.
CAGIGAL MONTE (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service. Custom Essay Services Cheap) identifies common errors that occur aboard a vessel and how they reduce the efficiency of the team members. Such errors include preoccupation with minor technical problems, inadequate monitoring, failure to delegate duties and responsibilities appropriately, failure to set clear priorities, and failure to communicate contingency plans (MARITIME AND COASTGUARD AGENCY (GREAT BRITAIN) 2002). Such errors lead to dangerous situations and reduce the efficiency of a team. HEARN (2009) indicates that Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment should focus on responsible challenge and response, closing all loopholes in communication, and above all team building. HEARN (2009) further indicates proper management ensures a team that maintains situational awareness, monitors the progress of the vessel constantly making appropriate adjustments and corrections where necessary for safe passage. Additionally, a proper bridge team acquires all the relevant information concerning a vessel early, delegates workload and authority appropriately, anticipates dangerous situations, and avoids by all means pre-occupation with minor technical problems hence, losing the big picture (SIMHYDRO et al. 2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay).
Communication is identified as an important aspect of a bridge team to complete its voyage. CARTWRIGHT (2002) discusses the process of communication aboard a vessel and the role members of a team play in ensuring the communication is effective for safe passage. According to him, the Master is responsible for advising the pilot on the language the members speak and how the communication between the pilot and the team should be handled. Additionally, the Master should discuss the voyage plan with the pilot and inform the other team members of the intentions and concerns raised during the discussion. HEARN (2007), states that the Master should advise the pilot on the maneuverability of the vessel. Additionally, he or she is responsible for advising the pilot on safety information necessary to ensure a safe transit incases when he is uncertain of the intentions of the pilot regarding the movement of the ship.
For success and effectiveness of a bridge team, knowledge of bridge equipment is necessary. BREBBIA, GRACZYK & JASTRZĘBSKI (2001) states that the way users interact with the equipment is important to the success of the team. They identify the interaction as human machine interface (HMI). HMI is extensive and covers aspects such as menus, displays, switches, controls, and audio signals. Setting the equipment in a way that ensures tasks are performed easily increases effectiveness at the bridge and overall success of the whole operation. Further, the information increases the overall situation awareness and encourages interaction with other equipment improving the view from the bridge windows. Considering the fact that in most cases there is only one person at the bridge window, it becomes necessary to work fully with the equipment. The full cooperation ensures that errors are minimal and the transit is safe. Accidents are minimal, and there is an improved situational awareness. Therefore, ALIKI (1993) proposes equipment as important part of the bridge team. He further suggests that it should be incorporated into the team as a means of ensuring efficiency and reducing accidents.

CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
OVERVIEW
The dissertation is designed to investigate the effect of good communication and proper bridge team management. According to SALAS, GOODWIN & BURKE (2009) effective communication is necessary for ensuring safety for vessels in the maritime sector. He states that effective communication and bridge team management results to a safe voyage. The arguments justify the direction for this research. To explore effective communication techniques and bridge team management in the maritime sector, qualitative research design will be adopted to collect the data. The data will then be analyzed according to the current scholarly literature on effective communication and bridge team management. The methodology focuses on rationale, the method used to collect data, respondents, and limitations of the research.
RATIONALE
Effective communication and proper bridge team management for safety at sea. The maritime authorities in different countries are paying great focus into these two areas hence, improving the safety of vessels at sea. The topic was chosen due to the researcher’s interest in the maritime sector. The focus of the research is to explore how effective communication coupled with effective bridge team management improves the efficiency of vessels and results to safe voyage.
RESEARCH DESIGN
The methodology used for this dissertation is qualitative research approach. The design tries to understand how participants view the world, and it mainly focuses on insight. The approach uses small samples of subjective data allowing richer and more detailed information to be sourced. The research relies on personal philosophy, experiences in the maritime world, assumptions, and general approach to scholarly investigations. However, the research is dictated by the question and not personal preferences. Therefore, a qualitative approach was the preferred approach. Observation and interviews were used as the main methods of data collections (Refer to appendix A).
METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION
The main methods used in the collection of data in this research are in-depth interviews and observation. Interviews were mainly chosen due to the suggestion of UNITED STATES (2010 – Essay Writing Service: Write My Essay by Top-Notch Writer) that interviews are an important tool utilized for effective internal communication within any organization. Additionally, interviews were chosen because they provide rich data that is necessary to answer the question. The interview mainly involved face-to-face interaction with the members and semi-structured interviews. Semi-structured interviews involve open-ended questions allowing people to be more open to provide detailed information. Observation, on the other hand, provides the researcher with an opportunity to observe directly the events of the team. Observation ensures the researcher makes an honest opinion of the situation at hand ensuring the data collected is accurate.
RESPONDENTS
The study will target thirty respondents who are from different companies that have bridge teams. The respondents will be of age ranges between 21 and 60. The respondents will be provided with a good environment for them to be in a better position to give accurate information. After identification of the a few respondents, they will assist in getting other respondents from other companies that have bridge teams. The type of sampling used in getting the respondents is referred to as snowball sampling. It helps in getting respondents from associate companies. The balance of the respondents will be considered with a half of them being youths between the age of 21-35 while the other half adults between the age of 36-60.

Figure 1.4: Pie chart on Age ranges of respondents

CHAPTER FOUR: EXAMINATION OF COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM ON BOARD
The chapter discusses the findings about the topic of communication and bridge team on board a ship. The findings are divided into sections that are the main findings, strengths of the findings, weaknesses of the findings, and the difficulties that were encountered.
MAIN FINDINGS
As discussed in the literature review section, communication plays an important role among the bridge team members on board in a ship. As STAFF (1900) puts it, the department in charge of internal communication in a given institution is the core of that given institution. The explanation of this claim is that in everyday situations, information flows throughout a given institution. The type of information that flows in a given institution dictates the running of the institution. In a situation where a wrong type of information is passed to the members of the institution, there will be many lapses in the institution’s running. Communication, therefore, is core to any given body. The first main finding was that communication is everything to a bridge team that is on board on a ship. When communication is practiced accordingly, the safety of the crew on the ship is of no doubt. Twenty-five of the thirty respondents who were selected for the research cited communication as the most important factor to a bridge team. They claimed that in ships where the communication between the bridge team members is maximized, the number of accidents that can be registered could be very low or even nil. The respondents also claimed that it is vital for the master of the bridge team to maintain constant communication with the deck officers.
The master is often in charge of the ship; therefore, he supervises all issues in the ship such as communication among others (DRUCKER & MACIARIELLO 2008 – Affordable Custom Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay from Pro Writers). One pilot answered that he played an important role in the ship as he considered communicating with all members of the team to ensure he had all the information about the things that were going on in the ship. He cited poor communication as the major reason there were so many ship accidents in the past. He claimed that during the past, most pilots often took the decisions on the ship as sole duties. The pilots, therefore, never passed any information about the breakdowns or changes in the ship lines to his/her junior.
The lack of communication brought about several inconveniences, as the crews were never united as some members of the crew felt worthless. Due to the lack of proper communication between the pilot and some of his/junior, he/she was forced to handle emergencies alone and this brought about several accidents. The respondent claimed that since the pilots never consulted anyone during the past, they made poor decisions that in turn led to several accidents. To him, a decision from an individual should not be considered a rich decision in a case where there are other competent individuals who can come together to reach a given decision. He considers the later a richer decision than the former’s decision. He accepts that the devolution of the ships’ crew of the recent years has minimized the amount of accidents registered in the marine environment. Most of the pilots no longer make decisions on their own but instead have bridge teams that support them in reaching certain decisions.
Another pilot also noted that communication between the officer on watch (OOW) and the pilot station is important. He noted that during the past, most of the pilot stations had incompetent personnel who failed to communicate back to the OOW after being alerted of the number of hours a ship would arrive. He claimed that in such situations, there were deadlock ends, as the OOW never had information about how the docking end would be like. At times, some of these ships would cause accidents since it would be like a situation where their arrival was unexpected. Most of the respondents above the age of 35 cited the lack of response by the radio stations as a major issue that often led to several accidents. The respondents claimed that they had worked on ships for a long time, and the lack of response seemed to persist for several years. Several other respondents claimed that the poor communication between the OOW and the radio stations often led to the delay of the ships in the departure and arrival of ships.
A respondent who claimed to have worked in the shipping industry for approximately twenty years claimed that the lack of proper communication between the OOW and the radio stations led to the increase in stress levels. She explained that in situations where there is no reply from the radio stations, several repeated calls are made to the stations to alert them to get back to the OOW. After several attempts to get in touch with the radio stations, the OOW would then be forced to double check the information about the passage plan for the ship, and this procedure may, in turn, increase the stress levels. She also claimed that a lot of information is shared between a pilot and master during the handing over exercise. The time allocated for this exercise is often short. Some of the information include ship details, maneuvering details, originating authority, propeller details, equipment defects, main engine details, details of passage plan, weather and sea conditions among others. In the case whereby the wrong information is given of the details, there are high risks of accidents as each detail needs to be evaluated for the ship to resume its journey.
When there is no proper communication between the master and the pilot, the ship has a high chance of involving in an accident. The captain claimed that her stay in the shipping industry made her witness several accidents that were caused by wrong information that was exchanged between a master and a pilot. She narrated a situation whereby the chemistry between a pilot and a master was not good. During the exchange of information, wrong details of the ship’ engine were provided together with the weather conditions. Many people later perished as the ship’s engine collapsed far away from any help center as the radio stations were unreachable. She claimed that a good rapport between a master and a pilot must exist for a ship’s journey to be a success. From the informants’ narrations, almost half of the ship accidents were brought about by human error. Almost all the respondents cited proper communication as the only key to avoiding ship accidents.
STRENGTHS OF DATA
All the informants that provided information on the topical issue were all employees of several ship companies that exist across several countries. The section will look into detail the various strengths of the data that was provided by the respondents. In general, most of the respondents cited communication as the driving force in most ship companies. Their responses cite poor communication between the persons involved in handling the ships as the major cause of various ship accidents (BARTOL & MARTIN 1994). The accidents then later reduced after the introduction of the bridge team that works hand in hand with the ship’s captain to ensure that the numbers of risks are reduced.
The information provided by these respondents show that the introduction of the bridge team was beneficial to the shipping industry as the team works jointly with the captain and other crew members to ensure that the ship is in a good condition. As some of the respondents claim, the bridge team often involves the captain on matters about the ship. In a case where the captain needs advice about what actions to take during different situations, he/she will contact the bridge team so that they reach a decision jointly. The procedure is unlike the past where the captains had total control on the ship and never consulted anyone in the ship when it came to decision making.
The various narrations by the respondents hint that the lack of proper communication between the pilots and the ships’ crews was the major cause of accidents as the pilots made poor decisions. In the past, the pilots believed that they were in charge of all the activities on the ship and were superior to all the cargo members. Listening to other crewmembers made them feel less superior hence; most of them chose to undertake their decisions in relation to the ships’ voyage. Since the bridge team management provides that the bridge team should play an important role in acting as a watch for the ship. Some of the respondents identified lack of bridge teams during the past years as a major loop in the shipping industry that brought about many accidents, as the crew delegated the job never did the job to satisfaction.
The introduction of bridge teams, therefore, was a major contribution to the industry as the members help the captains in running the affairs of the ship such as passing information to the relevant authorities. The bridge team members often undergo a thorough training to ensure that the bridge resource management is a success. The bridge resource management has several objectives that bridge team members have to fulfill (SINGER 2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service. Custom Essay Services Cheap). The objectives include assisting shipmasters in the management of the vessels; supervise the training of all the bridge team members, and ensure there is a proper interaction between the bridge team members and the master or the pilot (VIDEOTEL MARINE INTERNATIONAL &STEAMSHIP MUTUAL UNDERWRITING ASSOCIATION (BERMUDA) LTD (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service. Custom Essay Services Cheap). The respondents recognized the bridge team’s efforts as the pilots have people to rely on in case of emergencies. The bridge team members play an important role in the exchange of information between the vessel and the radio stations. In a case where the response from the radio stations is poor, the bridge team members often try to identify other ways in which the personnel at the radio stations can be reached to reduce the chances of accidents.
The respondents’ joint support for communication confirms that indeed it is not overrated, as it exists as the center of all ship operations. All crew members engage in passing information that revolves around the ship. The passing of wrong information can lead to an increase in stress levels in the ship or even an accident. In particular, communication between a master and a pilot is the most important type of communication in the shipping industry. In a case where the master gives wrong information to the captain of the ship, there is a high chance of an accident (BELASEN 2000). The information that is exchanged between these two individuals is vital as it relates to the ship and its surrounding environment. In a situation where the master gives wrong information about the ship’s engine information, the people aboard the ship stand a high chance of losing their lives in case there is no backup found by the bridge team members to help the ship’s situation when the engine develops a problem.
Just as a respondent stated, the relationship between the master and the captain should be a good one to minimize the chances of wrong information being passed between the two. The respondent gave an example of an accident that occurred and claimed the lives of many individuals. The accident was due to the poor relations between the captain and the master. The master ended up giving the captain wrong information about the ship and later during the journey, the ship’s engine failed in an environment whereby they could not get a backup. The relationship between the two should be observed keenly to ensure that there is cohesion between them. From the respondent’s narration, it can be deduced that the safety of the ship’s responsibility involves everyone aboard and in particular the master and the captain. The responsibility therefore, does not shift to either party but involves both of them at all times. The narrations of the respondents about the crewmembers that are the pilot, bridge team members among others reveal that the shipping industry should first look into the individuals’ competitiveness in performing their roles. In a case where all the crewmembers are competitive and fully deserve their jobs, few accidents can be registered. The narration from the respondent about the master that caused the deaths of many people who were aboard on a certain ship proves the master’s lack of competitiveness. Employees who are proud of their professions perform to the maximum, therefore, cannot trigger the loss of other people’s lives. The data that was presented by the respondents seem to have some relevance to the shipping industry, as the information about the various components of the industry is evident in the respondents’ narrations.
WEAKNESSES OF DATA
The section of the paper will look into the data that was provided by the respondents and provide an evaluation of them to come up with their weaknesses. Based on the data collected from the 30 respondents, only a few of the information provided by five of them was found to be insufficient. Among the five inaccurate respondents, an elderly man claimed that communication should not be exaggerated, as it is a minor issue during a ship’s movement. He also claimed that he had been in the industry for over twenty years and had been working as a pilot during that time. According to him, involving other crewmembers in consultations was time wasting, hence affected decision-making. He added that for the crewmembers to reach a decision, some of them will take a lot of time trying to explain themselves, and that can consume much time that can be redirected to handling emergencies. He argued that when an individual makes the decisions alone, no time is wasted, as he will not have to wait for any other person to put into practice the decision he/she has reached. He, therefore, faulted the introduction of the bridge team claiming that it wastes the pilot’s time. He supported his claim by his life in the shipping industry claiming that during his work as a pilot, he has never had any human-caused accidents because all the issues that revolve around the ship’s running are his to look into. He preferred ships without bridge team members to those with them claiming that he believes in himself and does not have to consult other people in the running of issues relating to his profession. He concluded that his stand on sole decision-making has made him be alive for the many years that he has seen his friends perish in accidents while working on the ships.
The other four respondents also shared his sentiments by seconding his stand on sole decision-making. They believed that sole decision-making was the best in handling situations about ships as every person is entitled to his opinion and each of the bridge team members would each present their opinion. They also claimed that a pilot and a master have different times when each takes charge of the ship. Contrary to the data submitted by some of the respondents regarding the joint role of the master and the pilot concerning the running of the ship, the five respondents claim that it is the duty of the pilot to ensure all those in the ship are safe while he is in charge. The stand differs from the stand of the other respondents who called for a joint delegation of the ship’s safety. The five respondents believe that the pilot is the one in charge of the ship and should only use his/her ways when handling issue related to the ship. The information provided by the five respondents contrast the initial information from the other respondents who called for consideration of teamwork when handling issues related to the ship to minimize accidents. It is evident that sole decisions are usually poor and may bring about unexpected accidents. The five individuals seem to prefer personal exploitation of the resources in the ship, and that may be dangerous to the ship’s occupants.
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED
The section will give an insight into some of the difficulties that were encountered during the collection of data. Some of the respondents were not willing to provide enough information on the topical issue. They believed that the information they were giving out was supposed to be private; therefore, no outsider was to have access to it. They demanded identification documents first to confirm if the information they would provide would be not used against them. It took much time to convince them to feel free and share their experiences as workers of the shipping companies. A little help from their willing compatriots helped to lure them to share the experiences. After the luring, the individuals gave contrasting information that they later corrected after gaining some confidence. During the search for respondents, some of the shipping staff partners from several regions refused to cooperate by claiming that they had little time to involve in such activities. Some of them became violent after being pleaded with to give responses to some of the issues. The presence of some of the respondents eased the situation as they talked to them. Another problem encountered during the data collection process was the little time allocation. The interviewing process had to be done fast as the respondents claimed that they had little time to respond to the interview questions.
Most of the questionnaires had many questions that required long answers from the respondents. Due to the availability of less time, some of the questions were left unanswered. It was also expensive to access some of the shipping companies, as it required a lot of capital to travel to some places. The distance to some of the places was long; therefore, it was exhausting. Language barrier was also a limitation in some shipping companies as some of the companies existed in other countries that used other languages apart from English, as their official languages. Communicating to such individuals was a problem; therefore, a translator had to be called. Another limitation was cultural bias. Some of the shipping companies existed in regions that adhered to a certain type of culture and, therefore, were unwilling to cooperate due to the differences in cultural preference. Accessing information on such individuals seemed to be an uphill task. The assistance o other individuals who had enough information about their culture helped to handle the situation though some of them were non-cooperative. Data collection, therefore, was characterized by several difficulties faced that were because of a few differences. Some of the differences were however handled through the assistance of other individuals who had information about the subjects of interest. The collection of data on the topical question was a success with only a few problems that were faced.

CHAPTER FIVE: LIMITATIONS OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM MANAGEMENT
The chapter is a discussion concerning the main findings, strengths of the data collected, weaknesses of data, and the difficulties encountered while assessing limitations of effective communication and bridge team management. It offers an in-depth understanding of the main limitations to effective communication among members of bridge team, and limitations that prevent efficient bridge team management. The discussion is based on the findings of the research hence, it offers a one on one experience. The chapter is divided into main findings, strengths and weaknesses of data collected, and the difficulties encountered in the process of data collection.
MAIN FINDINGS
Limitations of effective communication
The section contains detailed information concerning various limitations to effective communication in the maritime sector. It offers an in-depth account of the factors that limit effective communication between various vessels involved in the study and the views of different authors regarding various limitations to the same.
As stated earlier in the literature review, communication is an important aspect that ensures a safe and efficient voyage. POOLE & SPRINGETT (2000), state that effective communication involves the passing of information from a sender to a receiver through a medium. For communication to be termed effective, there should not be any barrier. Barriers lead to distortion of information being passed and results to poor communication. After successfully conducting research, several limitations to effective communication in the maritime sector were identified. The barriers were classified as language, physical, physiological, psychological, and systematic. All these barriers limited effective communication in many ways including navigation.
Language barriers involved linguistic inability among some crewmembers. Despite the fact that crewmembers communicated in the same language, some terminologies the sender of the message opted to use acted as a barrier to the message. The result was that the message was not fully understood by the receiver leading to poor communication. Poor communication in the maritime sector proved to be bad for the maritime sector in the areas that the research was conducted. One respondent gave an example of how poor communication led to a vessel hitting a rock while passing a bridge. The main reason that resulted in this situation is poor communication between the OOW and people on the ground. The information that OOW gave was misinterpreted, and the receiver did not get the appropriate message. Therefore, the vessel reversed from the route and hit a reef. Additionally, several respondents interviewed stated they have encountered language barrier while on duty despite them speaking the same language. They indicated that some expressions used could have led to misinterpretation of the message resulting in some problems on the vessel.
Another barrier that was identified as a factor limiting effective communication was the psychological barrier. WALPORT MARITIME TRAINING FILMS (2000) indicate that the psychological state of the communicators influence how a message is sent, received, and perceived. He further identifies factors that contribute to the psychological barrier. They include stress, anger, and low self-esteem. The respondents interviewed identified these factors as a limitation on how they received and perceived a message. One respondent, for example, stated that the way they received a message while under stress was different to how they could receive the same message while not under stress. Stress is a common issue in many organizations today. Many people have reported being stressed while in their jobs and that the stress was mainly because of the working conditions. Another contributing factor to stress in the workplace was personal issues. Due to these, many companies in the maritime sector have introduced stress management courses and counseling for their workers. Stress management impacts significantly to the company because it affects interpersonal relationships among employees. Many employees reported that they performed better when working in conducive environments. The reason is that conducive working environment does not trigger stress; therefore, the work team can perform better in their chores. Anger, on the other hand, was identified as a limiting factor in effective communication mainly because there was a tendency to misinterpret the message when people were angry. According to one respondent, the way he perceived a message when he was angry was different to how he perceived a message when he was not angry (POOLE &SPRINGETT 1998). He stated that anger led him to misinterpret a message especially when it came from the party that annoyed him. Another psychological factor that limited communication in the maritime sector was low self-esteem. Upon observation, it was noted that people with low self-esteem were less assertive and felt uncomfortable when communicating a message. They were shy about saying what they feel and read negative subtexts into the message they heard.
Physiological barriers were identified as a limitation to effective communication. Physiological barriers mainly resulted from physical state of the receiver of the message. An example of physiological barrier was identified as reduced hearing in the case of the receiver of the message. Reduced hearing in most cases resulted from background noise from the vessels. In case a message was communicated at the time, its efficiency was reduced because of the background noise limiting communication. Another physiological factor identified was the state of health of the receiver of the message. It was identified that when the receiver of the message was unwell, communication was ineffective. The message passed could be distorted and result to poor communication between the sender and receiver of the message.
Another barrier that was identified as a limiting factor to effective communication was physical. One example was identified as the distance between the sender and the receiver of the message. Many respondents agreed that geographical distance between the person communicating a message and the receiver was important in ensuring the message was correctly received. The respondents stated that the closer they were to the sender of the message, the effective the message was to them. VIDEOTEL PRODUCTIONS, VIDEOTEL MARINE INTERNATIONAL & STEAMSHIP MUTUAL (FIRM) (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service. Custom Essay Services Cheap). State that communication is easy over short distances compared to the long ones. He states that in cases where the distance between the sender and the receiver is short, more communication channels are available making communication easier and more effective. He adds that technology can be used to reduce the effect of a physical barrier and enhance communication overall.
A systematic barrier to effective communication mainly occurs in organizations that have inefficient communicative channels and where the people involved lack understanding of the roles they should play in ensuring effective communication. Upon interviewing the respondents, it was clear that some of them did not know their responsibilities in ensuring effective communication. Some of these respondents believed they did not have a role to play in ensuring communication was efficient and hence left a lot of burden to the senior workers. Another finding related to systematic barrier was that some vessels were not equipped with current technology that ensured effective communication was achievable. The lack of proper communication channels limited effectiveness in passing a message. A proper communication channel consists of the sender, receiver, and medium through which the information passes. Some of the respondents indicated that their companies lacked proper communication channels. Some indicated that the message did not pass through a proper channel, and that affected how the different respondents perceived the information.
Limitations of Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment
The section provides detailed information concerning limitations that arise in managing a bridge team in an effective manner. The section details and provides the findings of the topic from different members on different vessels. Views of different authors regarding the same topic are also addressed.
Team management is not an easy task yet is importance in many organizations today cannot be underestimated. Team management is important in the maritime sector to ensure the successful completion of a voyage (CURLEE & GORDON 2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay). Team management in the maritime sector is classified under Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment. Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment is defined as the management of the human resource available to the navigator for a safe and efficient voyage. It involves a clear definition of goals and setting up of a plan on how these goals will be achieved. However, some limitations are encountered when managing a bridge team as elaborated in these findings.
The first limitation that was identified was non-cooperation among the bridge team members. CHATTERJEA., LABOR & VIDAL (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay) indicate that for a safe and efficient voyage, teamwork is necessary. One person cannot work alone especially when the vessel leaves the harbor. Upon observation of different vessels that were used as a source of data for this study, cases of non-cooperation among members were identified. Some team members failed to cooperate in some instances. Others cooperated partially making it difficult for the person in charge of the team to manage efficiently. The poor management derailed the operations and endangered the vessels and people aboard. Some incidences of non-cooperation that were identified were the failure to adhere to the given instructions some crewmembers. The failure to follow instructions in a correct manner among some crew while aboard a vessel can lead to an accident, pollution, or loss of cargo.
The second limitation to effective bridge team management that was identified was limited resources. The respondents interviewed indicated that the resources they worked with were limited. The technology in some vessels was not up to date making safe navigation difficult. Some officer on watch who were interviewed claimed that they had misinterpreted information because of the technology involved in some instances. They indicated that the machines provided faulty information making it difficult to make appropriate choices in some cases. Such situations made management less effective and reduced competence of navigation. Another instance in which technology was identified as a limiting factor in the management of the bridge team was in communication with the members. MCLAUGHLIN, BLUM & ROBINSON (1964) indicate that technology is an important aspect of communication especially when the recipient of the message is a team. It ensures that the team members receive information on timely basis reducing the time that is wasted in passing the information manually.
Another limitation that was identified is that the crew was small in some vessels making it hard to assign duties to the workers. The management team of some vessels that participated in the study indicated that they faced difficulties in managing a small number of people. The difficulty mainly arose from the fact that it was hard for them to distribute and share the workloads. The result was that some members of the team were overworked reducing efficiency. On the other hand, senior respondents that had a large number of crew members indicated that it was difficult for them to manage a large pool of employees. They indicated that in some instances, some tasks were not performed to perfection due to a large number of people involved. WALPORT MARITIME TRAINING FILMS & KVH MEDIA GROUP (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay), indicate that it is always difficult for team leaders to manage a huge number of people. He states that in such instances, efficiency is likely to reduce leading to poor performance overall. Therefore, the respondents interviewed indicated that they preferred working with a manageable pool of employees to ensure efficiency and smooth running of the vessel.
Also, decision making in some vessels involved all the employees making it difficult to make fast decisions in cases of emergency (DRUCKER 1974). The act of involving every member of the bridge team in decision-making increased the risks of an accident because a lot of time was wasted in trying to come up with a solution. Many of the team members that were interviewed in different vessels preferred making decisions that concern their field of specialty on their own. They indicated that it reduced time wastage and prevented accidents in cases where they were bound to happen.
STRENGTH AND WEAKNESSES OF DATA
The section provides an account of the strengths and weakness of the data collected for the study. It contains a description of why the data provided is strong and gives some incidents that show the weaknesses of the data provided. The strengths and weaknesses of the data collected mainly arise because of the methods of data collection involved.
The main approach used to conduct this research was qualitative design. Much strength arose from the data. One is the fact that the data collected was based on description of the situations that affected the crewmembers. Therefore, it was easy to provide in-depth details about the information required making it more reliable. Additionally, since the data collected was based on face-to-face interviews and open-minded questions, it was easier to determine the emotions of the respondents, different personalities in play, and the behavior of the participants. Strength of the data collected was the fact that there was flexibility when answering the questions since the questions asked during the interview had no limitation. Therefore, the answers provided to various questions were detailed and with up to date information.
Additionally, the data collected is good for interpretation purposes. The main reason behind this is that the information provided contained many details regarding the topic of study. The respondents interviewed exhausted their ideas concerning the matter at hand ensuring the information given can be interpreted in different formats. Additionally, the interviewing method allowed for high response rates from the target sample. The high response rates ensured that the data provided was good for exploration and confirmation of the information that the respondents provided. Additionally, the strength of the data collected arose from the fact that the researcher interacted directly with different crewmembers. The interaction allowed the researcher to observe and make recordings from their points of view. Therefore, the researcher was able to select the most relevant information to include in the study. Moreover, the data collected is good for description of daily occurrences of different crewmembers because the researcher was in the social setting involved. Also, the data collected allow for a moderate degree of realism since it is done in the field. The researcher experienced the situation in real life and was able to collect data based on these events.
Despite the strengths identified above, the data collected had some weaknesses. One example is that the data collected might have been limited in some cases because the crewmembers had limited time that they were given to facilitate the interview. Therefore, the responses they gave were not expansive making it difficult when it came to analyses of the data. On the other hand, the vessels that allowed the crew members enough time for the interviews provided a lot of information regarding the topic making it difficult for the analysis of the data. Additionally, the data provided by the respondents interviewed had less statistical power because the respondents involved were limited. Qualitative research approach has limitation to the number of people interviewed because of the time and finances involved making the data less powerful regarding the statistics. Additionally, the use of observation as a method of data collection increases the possibilities biases. An example that was identified was selective perception. Additionally, the fact that the members knew they were under observation made them change some behaviors making it difficult to collect the correct data. Additionally, it was difficult to observe the crewmembers working in different stations at a time. Therefore, it made the data collected difficult to analyze.
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED
The part of the dissertation gives an insight into some difficulties encountered while collecting relevant data for the study. It gives details of problems the researcher went through to collect accurate data for the study. It offers an in-depth view of problems researchers go through in their attempts to collected appropriate data for research.
Communication and effective team management are sensitive issues in the maritime sector. They are important in ensuring a vessel navigates successfully no matter its size. During the investigations, several difficulties were encountered. One is that the information collected was in some cases less efficient due to the sensitivity of the matter involved. Some members participating in the research failed to open up regarding some issues making it difficult to record the correct information involved. Some of them felt that if they provided certain information, it could be used against them despite the fact that most of the interview sections were private. Additionally, it was difficult to obtain information from the senior members of the team because they were the ones in charge. Some of these respondents indicated that they preferred privacy concerning how they ran their affairs. Therefore, the information they provided was scanty.
Another difficulty encountered was language barrier. There were terms specific to the maritime sector, and only the crewmembers could understand them. In some cases, the terms made it difficult to assess the situation at hand and required an in-depth research to understand them. Additionally, the time allocated to the crewmembers for face-to-face interviews was limited. Therefore, the researcher had to make the interviews fast making it difficult to record the information collected properly. Therefore, the researcher missed some points that the respondents gave. Moreover, observation in some cases proved difficult because it entailed visiting different parts of the vessels at different times. Therefore, a lot of time was consumed in the process. In addition to the time, the fact that some members of the crew knew they were under observation they changed their behaviors making it difficult to record the appropriate information and daily occurrences.
Another difficulty that was encountered during the research is the fact that some members were reluctant to answer the questions, and it took a lot of effort to convince them to participate in the study. Therefore, a lot of time was consumed in the process prolonging the time allocated for the collection of data. Additionally, gaining access to some vessels was difficult because of the strict security concerns. Such vessels included the oil tankers. The vessels were difficult to access because of the strict rules that ensured only the members of the crew had access to certain places on the vessel.
The reason behind this is the fact oil is volatile, and any mishandlings could result in catastrophes that could have been avoided. Additionally, the sensitivity of some cargo made it difficult to access some areas on the ship. Therefore, there was a limitation to the data that was obtained.

CHAPTER SIX: ESTABLISHMENT OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND TEAM MANAGEMENT IN THE MARITIME SECTOR
The chapter discusses the findings about the topic of the establishment of effective communication and team management in the maritime sector. The findings are divided into subsections that are an introduction, main findings, strengths of the findings, weaknesses of the findings, the difficulties that were encountered, and conclusion.
INTRODUCTION
It is important to appraise several measures in the establishment of effective communication and team management in the maritime sector. As explained in the introduction and literature review sections of this dissertation, effective communication and team management play important roles in ensuring that risks are minimized in the maritime sector. It has been learned that the ability to pass information either through written means or by word of mouth is important for the safety of passengers, visitors, and ships’ crews. Proper team management also helps to ensure this safety as all the crewmembers work together to ensure that everyone aboard is safe. Not only are the people aboard a ship responsible for the ships’ safety, but the bridge teams ashore also play an important role in ensuring that the people in the ship are safe. The bridge teams ashore often ensure that there is constant communication with the ships’ crews. The communication between the bridge team members has to abide by the stipulated regulations that require all the team members to converse through an official language. Conversing in one language eases the relay of information (RAYUDU 2010 – Essay Writing Service: Write My Essay by Top-Notch Writer). An official language, in this case, should be English. Most people find it easy to speak in English; therefore, cases of misunderstandings will be minimized. Through teamwork, bridge team members can find solutions to problems while on board a ship. Safety is the main concern regarding the marine sector. New ideas are often established on ways to ensure that the safeties of those aboard a ship are upheld. To understand the ways of ensuring safety in a ship, team management and effective communication must be addressed.
MAIN FINDINGS
As stated in the literature review section of this dissertation, effective communication is crucial to those individuals aboard and ashore. It is also important to ensure that the team management is practiced. The research, therefore, was concerned with the measures taken to ensure that there is effective communication and team management in the marine sector. The respondents that participated in this research also identified communication as the key to a safe voyage of a ship. Most of the thirty respondents claimed that a proper flow of information must always be ensured before a ship begins its voyage. To them, the structures set up to ensure communication is possible within and outside the ship should be rechecked to ensure that all of them are functional. They insisted on the presence of technicians before a voyage to ensure that the ship’s parts are functional and in the case of any breakdowns that could happen, the communication system should be reviewed to aid in the flow of information from a given help centre to the given ship. Three-quarters of the respondents also claimed that English should be the official language used in ships. They supported the claim by narrating various instances whereby the captains who were in charge of a ship could barely speak English and that brought about miscommunication. One of the respondents, a middle-aged man claimed that he once had travelled on a ship that had different people who spoke different languages. He happened to speak to one of the crewmembers in English, as he wanted to inquire about the remaining time to his destination. The crewmember never spoke English, and therefore, there was a misunderstanding between them. He claimed that the captain had to address all the ship’s issues, as he was the only one who could speak to the travelers in English. All the other crewmembers addressed people in different languages that most of the English-speaking persons failed to understand. Another respondent claimed that after working on a ship for five years as a captain, her and other captains decided to raise the issue of the language barrier as a factor that is hindering the proper communication. She claimed that a body known as the Standard Marine Communication Phrases (SMCP) then addressed the issue. The body was formed to ensure that the language barrier problem was addressed. She alleged that the body functioned for only a few years but became inactive as crew members of different ships who spoke different languages started to resurface. The body of captains then sat again to address the issue as the difference in languages spoken often brought about misunderstandings and sometimes even accidents. The body in charge of recruitment of seafarers addressed the issue. According to her, the body’s role in the changes that happened on the shipping industry was great, as the seafarers had to have an understanding of English. The seafarers, therefore, had to be tested in their knowledge of the English language during their recruitment. The testing ensured that only individuals who could understand the English language were selected as seafarers.
Another respondent also claimed that the introduction of the Bridge Resource Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment (BRM) helped minimize accidents in the shipping industry. He applauded the role the BRM plays during the selection of bridge team members. According to him, the selection is usually based on merit, and only qualified individuals are chosen. The individuals are then taken through a thorough training on how to ensure safe operations in case of any emergencies during a voyage. The BRM trains the team members always to be aware of the roles they are supposed to undertake. BRM plays an important role in ensuring that the bridge team members can reduce risks while on board and respond correctly to a ship’s changing situations. The respondent gave an example of an encounter he had once had while travelling on a ship. The ship that he had boarded did not have bridge team members, as it was several years back. The ship’s engine broke down, and this made many people to panic. It was by chance that a support ship was passing by, and they were rescued. He also narrated another incident while on board in a ship that had bridge team members. The bridge team members quickly rectified a lapse in the ship’s control system. Hence, there was no panic as compared to his initial narration where the travelers panicked. The narrations by the respondents confirm reveal that an official language and a proper team management play a crucial role in ensuring the safety of those aboard a ship. The number of lives that have been saved due to the preference of an official language has been high. The bridge team has also helped save lives as the members practice team management. Most of the respondents supported the idea of the establishment of a common language such as English, which all the crewmembers must have good knowledge of to ensure that the cases of misunderstandings are minimized.
STRENGTHS OF THE FINDINGS
The section will look into some of the strength of the findings as per the information that was provided by the respondents. Most of the respondents seemed to express their concern on the issue of communication and team management. The findings, therefore, reveal the voices of the people regarding the measures taken to address effective communication and team management. The information that was provided by the respondents is helpful in the formulation of other measures on effective communication and team management. The respondents were allowed to exercise full authority during the research as they most of them managed to share their experiences regarding their views on the ways effective communication and team management has existed. The respondents further highlighted the need to use an official language in communication to reduce the accidents that were related to the marine sector. The methods of collecting information made the respondents open up. Anonymity was preferred in the collection of data. The respondents were therefore assured of their identities not being revealed anywhere and this made them cooperate fully. The information provided by the respondents helped to reveal some lapses within the bodies that handle marine affairs. An example of a body that was exposed by the respondents was the SMCP.
A female respondent claimed that the body was formed purposefully to address the issue of language barrier in the marine sector. She narrated that the body was only functional for a few years before it became dormant. Its dormancy led to the recruitment of several crew workers who lacked knowledge of the English language. The lack of knowledge in the English language, therefore, brought about several inconveniences in the ships as there was no common language in which people aboard the ships would communicate. The lack of proper communication, in turn, brought about an increase in the risk levels and at times human related accidents that could be avoided. The information from the respondents was helpful as it revealed the reason most accidents were human-related. Just as a study that was conducted in Netherlands that revealed that revealed that 96% of marine casualties are caused by human errors; the respondents blamed the mistakes that crews make. The data from the respondents confirm the level of laxity among humans as most accidents are caused by human errors. The female respondent claimed that the accidents would have been avoided if the people who were in charge acted in time. Captains committed a major mistake that was making decisions on their own without involving other crewmembers. The situation during the past reveals that consulting other crewmembers was difficult at times as some of them spoke different languages (EHLERS, WOLFRUM & BORGESE 2002). The misunderstanding between them, therefore, increased the risk levels and, in turn, brought about accidents. The respondents’ information was crucial in helping to clear the air, as most of their respondents were in line with several studies that confirmed most of the marine accidents were due to human errors. The studies show that either an individual or two individuals made the errors. Each of them made two errors. In a case where the bridge team was set up during that time, the errors would have been reduced since the members would involve in a discussion to come up with the best response to a given problem.
In a situation where a problem is shared, its solution can be easily reached. However, most of the captains during the past often decided to undertake several decisions on their own without having consultations. The respondents also revealed that some crews that are employed in certain ships have no knowledge of English. In such situations, communication is paralyzed. The respondent gave an example of a situation where he needed assistance but could not communicate with one of the crewmembers because the later did not understand English. The lack of knowledge in English brought about misunderstandings that could have been avoided in case the crewmember could speak English. The information from the respondents revealed that some bodies in the marine sector did a good work regarding the reduction of risks and accidents. An example of such a body is the bridge team management. From one of the respondent’s encounter, the body has helped the shipping industry. The respondent recounted two encounters when he boarded a ship that had the bridge team members and another that only had the crewmembers. The manner in which situations were handled told all about the effectiveness of the bridge team members. The respondent revealed that the bridge team members undergo training whereby they are taught all aspects of the ship and ways in which they should react to different emergencies. The bridge team members are also taught several aspects of effective communication and team management. According to the respondent, the bridge team members function perfectly as they engage in teamwork regarding handling several situations. The respondent faulted individual decisions during emergencies. An example he gave was of a pilot who embarked on his decision about handling an emergency. The lone decision brought about an increase in stress levels in the ship as most of the people panicked. The information provided by the respondents revealed the ways in which different bodies performed their duties. The findings prove that the shipping industry had several weaknesses that needed to be addressed during some times and it the address would have been on time, several lives would have been saved. The findings also reveal the reason most of the marine accidents were human related. The respondents suggested ways in which the human errors could be reduced hence making the people aboard a given ship safe.
WEAKNESSES OF THE FINDINGS
The section will discuss some of the weaknesses regarding the information provided by the respondents regarding effective communication and team management. Most of the respondents identified effective communication as the core of operations within a vessel. The respondents, however, failed to note that team management is also as important as communication with any vessel. Some of the respondents recognized the bridge team management as a body that played an important role in revolutionizing the shipping industry as they reacted to different emergencies according to the way they were trained. The respondents never pictured teamwork as the driving factor in bridge teams.
Teamwork normally helps the bridge team members to handle several emergencies that an individual could not manage. Though communication is key in the marine sector, teamwork also plays an important role. The majority of the respondents center their experiences on communication. They claim that with proper communication, the vessels can avoid unnecessary stress and accidents. The respondents, however, forget that without teamwork, the vessels’ crews cannot react accordingly to the emergencies. Teamwork has some benefits that when coupled with effective communication, emergencies that may occur during voyages can be handled well. Teams perform several functions that include sharing of responsibilities, creation of harmonious atmospheres, sharing of workloads, sharing of the available resources, dealing with conflicts jointly, reaching the set goals together, and helping one another succeed.
Another major weakness is the lack of acknowledgement by the respondents that people belong to different cultures. A respondent claimed that he one c had an encounter with a crewmember who could not speak English. The difference in culture seems to be brought out in this situation. The mistake was not in the part of the crewmember, but it was on the recruiting body. According to most shipping companies, their crews should be well conversant with the English language as it is the official language in most countries. In cases where the crewmembers cannot speak English, they often undergo training that is offered by the recruiting bodies (BERGER 1996). With proper training, an individual can react accordingly to emergencies, as there will only be one language used in communication. The various weaknesses arose from the information that was provided by some of the respondents. Most of the respondents believed that effective communication is the core of the maritime sector. The claim cannot be regarded as false although proper communication and group management both play an important role in the maritime sector as they mutually exist.
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED
The section will examine some of the difficulties that were faced during the process of extracting information from the respondents. Since there was a combined use of different methods to collect information, most of the respondents who responded to the questions selected only some items to give their responses. The lack of response on some of the areas brought about missing information. The respondents only gave responses to the questions they selected, as they were no obligations. The selection of the questions to respond to narrowed the information that was to be extracted. Some of the respondents never cooperated. It was noted that almost all the respondents responded to the various questions they were asked except two who demanded anonymity. The two respondents claimed they were not sure if the whole idea of asking them questions was fraud. Another difficulty encountered was language barrier. There were terms that were specific to the maritime sector, and only the crewmembers could understand them. In some cases, the terms made it difficult to assess the situation at hand and required an in-depth research to understand them.
Additionally, the time allocated to the crewmembers for face-to-face interviews was limited. Therefore, the researcher had to make the interviews fast making it difficult to record the information collected properly. During the search for respondents, some of the shipping staff partners from several regions refused to cooperate by claiming that they had little time to involve in such activities. Some of them became violent after being pleaded with to give responses to some of the issues. It was also expensive to access some of the shipping companies, as it required a lot of capital to travel to some places. The distance to some of the places was long hence exhausting. Language barrier was also a limitation in some shipping companies as some of the companies existed in other countries that used other languages apart from English, as their official languages. The difference in their language presence was attributed to cultural orientation. Cultural orientations of some of the respondents affected the acquisition of information. Some respondents claimed that they preferred people who understand them to question them though they can give information to outsiders. Communicating to such individuals was a problem; therefore, a translator had to be called.
CONCLUSION
From the explanation above, several measures need to be put in place regarding the establishment of effective communication and team management. Communication and team management have been identified to play a big role in the marine sector. Effective communication helps in the reduction of stress and prevention of unnecessary accidents. It has been learned that the ability to pass information either through written means or by word of mouth is important for the safety of passengers, visitors, and ships’ crews. Proper team management also helps to ensure this safety as all the crewmembers work together to ensure that everyone aboard is safe. During the process of finding information related to effective communication and team management, several problems were encountered. The information collected was also found to have several strengths and weaknesses. Addressing the measures that were suggested by some of the respondents is important in the establishment of a marine sector with effective communication and proper team management.

CHAPTER SEVEN: ANALYSIS
The chapter is about the discussion of the findings in an innovative manner. The analysis will involve the subtopics that are the examination of communication and bridge team on board, limitations of effective communication and bridge team management, and the establishment of effective communication and team management in the maritime sector.
EXAMINATION OF COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM ON BOARD
It is important to examine communication and the bridge teams on board in the maritime sector. Communication, as it has been discussed, is the center of operations in the maritime sector. Proper communication between the bridge teams and the engine control rooms help to facilitate the proper running of operations. Communication between the bridge teams and the crews helps in the coordination and completion of interconnected tasks. The passage of information can be done through some ways that include the use of devices, face-to-face communication, and written communication.
Bridge teams have a great role to play in ensuring that operations are successful. The bridge teams coordinate together with the crewmembers to address issues that may arise during a voyage. During the training of bridge team members, they are taught to engage in collaborative teamwork in handling different situations (FILMS FOR THE HUMANITIES & SCIENCES (FIRM), FILMS MEDIA GROUP, & SEVEN DIMENSIONS FILMS OF AUSTRALIA. 2009). Proper coordination between the bridge teams and the crewmembers can help in the coordination of various activities in case there are emergencies. The bridge teams also make sure that the channels of communication between those onboard and the offshore teams are set up correctly. In the case of emergencies, the crew and the bridge team members can reach out the radio stations.
It is vital to note that the type of information that passes through the systems of a marine department dictate the running of the department. The information across such systems is crucial since, in a situation where wrong information is passed, the operations within the system may be paralyzed. The study found out that communication between the bridge teams is crucial to the board on a ship. Proper communication ensures that the safety of those on board is upheld. Lapses in the communication department can bring about high-stress levels and accidents. From the responses given by the respondents, effective communication was identified as the major factor that keeps the bridge teams together. The respondents related this to the number of accidents that occur. From their experiences, the bridge teams that had set up proper communication channels countered several accidents that would have occurred in case there was no effective communication between the team members. The claim is justified since statistics prove that during the past when the bridge teams had not been established, the numbers of accidents were higher compared to after the establishment of the bridge teams. The high number of accidents can be explained by the lack of properly set up channels of communication.
During the past, the captain assumed most of the responsibilities, and this made it difficult for him to attend to all services, both onshore and offshore (GREAT BRITAIN 1988). The captain, therefore, got overwhelmed, as no other properly trained personnel could assist him /her. The introduction of the bridge teams, however, played an important role in the shipping industry as they assumed some of the responsibilities that were initially performed by the crewmembers. The bridge teams’ qualification was important in the shipping industry. Before the joining of bridge teams, individuals had to undergo a thorough training that included the ways of responding to emergencies. The ways called for teamwork from the members. The respondents also cited the communication between the master and the captain of a ship as important. It is important since, during their meeting, much information about the ship is exchanged within a few minutes.
In a case where wrong information is given, the lives of the people aboard the ship may be at risk. Some of the information include ship details, maneuvering details, originating authority, propeller details, equipment defects, main engine details, details of passage plan, weather and sea conditions among others. When wrong information is given of these details, the ship stands a high chance of involving in an accident which when not addressed in time can lead to the loss of several lives. Just as one of the respondents claimed, the relationship between the captain and the master dictate much about the accuracy of the information provided. In a case where the two do not relate properly, there is a high chance that the information provided may not be in line with the actual state of the ship. The lives of those on board may be exposed to risks. The respondent asserted that it was, therefore, important to the master and the captain to have good relations to help secure the lives of the individuals aboard. A respondent who had been a pilot for several years claimed that as the captain of the ship, he had to supervise all the operations of the ship. He cited proper communication with the crewmembers. He claimed the members help the captains in the running of activities within the ship and should feel accepted so as to provide their services wholeheartedly. The provisions of teamwork that require all the members of teams to appreciate one another validate the claim. Working as teams helps in solving problems jointly, and that is the reason the respondent claimed that his good relationship with the crewmembers facilitated successful journeys.
LIMITATIONS OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND BRIDGE TEAM MANAGEMENT
The section will carry out an analysis of the limitations of effective communication and bridge team management. Communication has been identified in most parts of the paper as important. It is because effective communication ensures the efficiency and safety of the voyage. Just as YATES (2008 – Affordable Custom Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay from Pro Writers) claims, effective communication involves the passing of information from a sender to a receiver. The passage of the information is a success in case there are no barriers. The barriers often hinder the relay of information as the information may be distorted. The research identified several limitations to effective communication. The limitations affect the maritime sector, as the intended information is not passed. The respondents identified several limitations to effective communication in the maritime sector. The suggestions by the respondents can be classified as physical, language, psychological, physical, and systematic barriers. The barriers acted as limitations to effective communication during voyages.
The respondents identified language barrier as a limitation of effective communication. It is the inability of the crewmembers to speak the English language. The English language was selected as the official language to be used by vessels. In some vessels, the crewmembers were unable to understand the language, and this brought about misunderstandings. The misunderstandings dealt the maritime sector a big blow as communication was identified by the respondents as key in the sector.
Psychological barriers were identified as limiting factors in effective communication (ROSNER, HALCROW & LEVINS 2001). The respondents claimed that the psychological states of the individuals who worked on the ship had an influence on their messages. Some of these psychological states include anger and stress. It can be deduced that when one is angry, he/she is likely to act in an unusual way. When he/she is under pressure during this state, the information he/ she can provide can be false, and this can affect the operations within a vessel. People who are under psychological states are not likely to cooperate as usual. The respondents’ claim that the psychological barriers play a role in effective communication, therefore, is justified.
Another limitation to communication was physiological barriers. The physiological barriers were described as the physical states of the information receivers. Reduced hearing was an example stated by one of the respondents. Reduced hearing can occur in situations where there is a lot of noise (MCQUAIL 1975). In the vessels, hearing may be reduced due to the background noises made as they move. The health of the receiver is a physiological barrier. There are people with hearing problems, therefore, can have a problem in getting an actual message from a sender. Physical barrier was also identified as a barrier to effective communication (MCQUAIL 1975). An obstruction can be a physical barrier. In a situation where there is a wall between people, the passage of the information from the sender to the receiver can be an uphill task. Lastly, systematic barriers were experienced in situations where the shipping organizations lacked sufficient equipment for communication purposes (HARGIE, DICKSON & TOURISH 2004). In such cases, communication between those on board and the stations was never successful. It is important to train all the crewmembers so that each ought to have knowledge of the roles they should play in the maritime sector. The claims by the respondents, therefore, are justified as several limitations affected effective communication in the maritime sector.
Just like effective communication, team management also faces various limitations in the maritime sector. The success of a voyage can be attributed to team management. In a situation where people work as teams, much is accomplished compared to when an individual works alone. Bridge teams usually practice teamwork, and that explains why the introduction of the bridge teams led to a decline in the number of accidents. The teams coordinate in such a way that they tackle issues that arise collectively. The Bridge teams fall under the Bridge Team Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment (MCNETT (2005). The management is involved in recruiting the bridge team members. During the recruitment, the bridge team members under a thorough training where they are taught the benefits of embracing teamwork in their operations. The training explains the reason most accidents in the maritime sector have been countered.
The bridge team management normally has goals and plans on how the goals will be achieved. The bridge team members are, therefore, enlightened of the goals and ways of achieving them. The body is important in defining the relationship between those on board a ship. Examples of limitations to bridge team management include non-cooperation among the bridge team members, limited resources, and insufficient crew. Non-cooperation among some bridge team members made the completion of tasks difficult. An example is during an emergency. Every bridge team member is expected to play a role during emergencies. In situations where some decline to cooperate, the emergency would not be handled properly (ALDAG & KUZUHARA 2015 – Research Paper Writing Help Service). Lack of enough resources was also a challenge to the bridge team management. According to the respondents, some ships were found to lack emergency equipment. The lack of such equipment brought about a slow response to the emergencies. It can even lead to increased stress levels and even death. Lastly, some shipping companies lacked enough personnel. Every ship ought to have enough bridge team members who work together to ensure the voyage is a success. In cases where there are fewer workforces, the bridge team members can get over-exhausted. The maritime sector, therefore, faces many limitations regarding effective communication and bridge team management.
ESTABLISHMENT OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND TEAM MANAGEMENT IN THE MARITIME SECTOR
The section will provide an analysis of the need for the establishment of effective communication and team management in the maritime sector. The literature review section among other sections of the dissertation state that effective communication and team management are crucial to all individuals aboard and ashore. The aspect of communication of interest, in this case, is language. For the communication process to occur, a language must exist. Normally, the English language has been the preferred language for use in the maritime sector. Employees in the maritime sector often undergo training in cases where they do not understand the English language. A common language eases communication and minimizes misunderstandings (HALLIDAY & SLATER 1983).
Several respondents gave their experiences regarding communication using a common language. One claimed that she approached a crewmember who could not understand the English language. The misunderstanding could have been avoided in case the crewmember could speak English. In some situations, the misunderstandings arise between the crewmembers. The types of misunderstanding between crewmembers can halt operations within the ship. An example can be during emergencies. During emergencies, crewmembers are usually engaged so that they can counter the dangers. When the crewmembers cannot speak one language, there will be a lot of confusion and misunderstanding. Understanding should exist during such operations for faster response from the crewmembers. Several pilots apart from the respondents, aired out their experiences with people who spoke different languages suggested the idea of a one-language policy. They claimed that when having different people who speak different languages, making progress in any activity within the vessel is difficult and may require a translator. Translation can be time-consuming, and this may increase the time taken for responding to the various emergencies. SMCP was the body that was formed to address the language issue. It was decided that all crewmembers had to have knowledge of the English language. The crewmembers who could not speak English had to undergo training so that all those on board had one way of communication.
A respondent who has been in the industry for several years claimed that the body did not work for a long time as cases of crewmembers who could not speak English increased. The respondent’s claim is justified since communication is vital in the marine sector. All individuals who are in the marine sector should ensure that they have a language of communication, and the chosen language was English. When everyone can speak one language, operations can be fast since the cases of misunderstandings will be minimized (HOOVER 2002). The introduction of the bridge team members facilitated the promotion of the English language among seafarers as the body insisted in testing their English language skills. The individuals who could not understand English underwent training. The body’s role in the promotion of the English language was helpful in the facilitation of a one-language policy within the marine sector. Using one language in a given environment brings about understanding. People who speak one language can easily engage themselves, and that was the motive of the body as the crewmembers could jointly engage in handling different situations. From the narrations of the respondents, the bridge team has helped the shipping industry. The team members are trained to acquire knowledge on how to act in different situations.
Captains no longer have to multitask as the bridge members have subordinated them. The members have special training in ways to react to emergencies. A reduction in the number of accidents can confirm this. The bridge members undergo training on the maintenance of a constant communication system. The bridge team management advocates for bridge team members who can react accordingly to emergencies. The narrations that the respondents gave to support the claim that bridge teams play a vital role in the marine sector. The narrations reveal that the bridge teams have done much regarding assurance of the safety of those on board. Since the bridge teams have members, who have an understanding of the English language, working as groups does not become challenging. The members, can in turn, work together to handle the various duties on the ships during the voyages. Their knowledge of the English language can also ensure that they set up a proper communication system. With a proper communication system, effective communication is achieved, which is the core of operations within the marine sector.

CHAPTER EIGHT: CONCLUSION
The study was set out to explore the impacts of effective communication and bridge team management. The study also sought to identify ways in which communication can be made effective and influence the marine sector through the bridge teams. The study was conducted on several shipping companies to identify how they organized their bridge teams and the ways they ensured there is effective communication between the bridge team members. The study focused on answering the following questions:
i. Is maritime English important amongst bridge teams onboard and ashore?
ii. Do effective communication and bridge team management have limitations
iii. How can the establishment of effective communication and team management in the maritime sector be achieved?
iv. What communication levels are bridge team managements on board have?
The major empirical findings were organized into chapters that evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of the findings. An overview of the findings reveals that communication plays an important role in the shipping operations. Without proper communication, the operation cannot be a success. Bridge teams were also identified as a major investing in the marine sector as the introduction of the teams brought about a decrease in the number of accidents. Many of the respondents supported this claim by describing their experiences with the bridge teams since all them belonged to the marine sector. The findings also revealed that Maritime English helps to eliminate the misunderstandings that may arise due to differences in language GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MARITIME UNIVERSITIES & LOGINOVSKY (2009).
The respondents described how the differences in languages spoken in the maritime sector had often brought about inconveniences. The findings reveal that the employment of one language to be used within the sector has eased the relay of information. Since communication is the center of operations in the sector, facilitating proper communication channels has brought about success in the sector. Due to the contributions of communication and bridge team management in the maritime sector, the theoretical cases for both need to be revisited to ease the understanding of their impacts on the maritime sector. GAN (1997) suggests that communication should be given the priority as far as the maritime sector is concerned; however, FAULKNER (1984) claims that both effective communication and bridge team management deserve recognition in the maritime sector since they have been accompanied by several positives within the sector.
The introduction of the bridge team management was a policy program that influenced the operations within the maritime sector. The bridge team members underwent training where they were taught ways to handle different situations aboard and ashore. The study reveals that before the introduction of the bridge team management, some operations within the maritime sector were never successful as there were no personnel to handle certain situations. The idea of introducing the bridge team members was a good one as they managed to assist in handling several situations within the maritime sector. Effective communication between the bridge team members is responsible for their success as they have coordinated systems of relaying information. For future purposes, it is important to undertake similar studies to check on the progress made in the bridge team management and other additions that may be important for the maritime sector INTERNATIONAL NAVIGATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON MARINE NAVIGATION AND SAFETY OF SEA TRANSPORTATION, & WEINTRIT (2009). It is important to conduct similar studies purposefully to counter future issues that may arise due to the changing trends within the maritime sector. The study also involved various respondents from different backgrounds, and this brought about various challenges. For future purposes, it is important to consider ways of countering the challenges that were faced. In spite of the various challenges that the maritime sector has faced over the years such as the loss of many lives, the research reveals that effective communication and bridge team management provide light in the sector, as the two factors show how the risks and accidents associated with the sector can be minimized.

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Appendix A
Interview Questions
1. How much does communication mean to you?
2. Do you engage in effective communication? If yes, what are the components of effective communication?
3. What are the barriers to effective communication
4. What is your experience while working in the maritime sector?
5. What are some of the challenges while working in the maritime sector?
6. Do you know about bridge teams?
7. What experiences have you had with bridge team members?
8. What do you think is the major cause of marine accidents?
9. What does teamwork mean to you?
10. Have you ever been involved in teamwork?

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