Registration
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Research Proposal DescriptionOccupational exposure to cold environments presents significant challenges for high-hazard extractive industries, particularly oil and gas operations and mining activities conducted under severe climatic conditions. Although established occupational safety frameworks address physiological cold stress and the prevention of cold-related injuries, the extent to which cold-induced changes in cognitive and sensorimotor performance are integrated into operational reliability and process safety assessments remains insufficiently characterized.This scoping review aims to systematically map the available evidence linking occupational cold exposure to human performance, human error, safety-critical task execution, and safety barrier integrity in extractive industries. Particular attention will be given to subzero environments, where thermal exposure may coincide with additional operational hazards and functional limitations affecting the execution of safety-critical activities.Following the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology and PRISMA-ScR reporting guidelines, the review will integrate occupational field studies, controlled experimental investigations, epidemiological research, human reliability models, and relevant industrial safety reports published between 2000 and 2026. Evidence will be organized across three interconnected domains: physiological and functional responses to cold exposure, human performance and operational reliability, and documented or modeled safety outcomes.The review will distinguish directly observed associations from experimental findings and model-based estimates, identifying where evidence supports relationships between cold exposure and operational safety and where these relationships remain hypothetical or insufficiently investigated.By examining the integration of environmental exposure, human factors, and safety barrier performance, the review seeks to identify methodological gaps, characterize limitations in existing risk assessment approaches, and establish priorities for future research on safety-critical operations in cold environments.The anticipated contribution is an evidence-informed framework for understanding how cold-related human performance limitations may be considered alongside conventional thermal protection measures within occupational and process safety risk assessment.
Source: Figshare
Author: Ramon Portillo
Language: English
Subfield: Safety Research
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7225427838