On 14 November 1969 the Apollo 12 mission lifts off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the second to take astronauts to the surface of the Moon. On board are Charles Conrad, Richard Gordon and Alan Bean. It is raining, and shortly after launch the rocket is struck twice by lightning: the instruments go haywire. At mission control in Houston, John Aaron remembers a similar fault and suggests switching to auxiliary power. Bean finds the switch, the data return and the mission goes on. On 19 November Conrad and Bean land in the Ocean of Storms, a few steps from the Surveyor 3 probe.
What happens after a surprise, once the problem is solved? Many groups simply move on. In 2013 Scott Tannenbaum and Christopher Cerasoli, in Human Factors, gathered in a meta-analysis the studies on “debriefs” (or “after-action reviews”): moments when a team or a person reflects on what was done, discusses it and sets goals. Across 46 samples, 2,136 participants in total, debriefs improved effectiveness by about 25% on average compared with a control group. The average effects were similar for teams and individuals, in simulated and real situations.
A few cautions. It is an average across very different studies, not a guarantee for every group, and it says nothing about what NASA did after Apollo 12: the link with the story is ours. I read only the abstract.
What can we do with it? These are our own common-sense ideas, not findings of the study. After a problem tackled together (at home, at work, in a team) spend ten minutes on four questions: what did we want to achieve, what really happened, what worked, what will we do differently next time. It is better to talk about facts and solutions than to look for someone to blame.
And you, do you ever review a surprise with someone once it has passed? Tell us in the comments how you do it: your method may help someone else.
Sources
- Tannenbaum, S. I., Cerasoli, C. P. (2013), “Do team and individual debriefs enhance performance? A meta-analysis”, Human Factors 55(1), 231-245. DOI 10.1177/0018720812448394
- “Apollo 12”, English-language Wikipedia entry (accessed 8 November 2026)
The contents of this blog are for information only and do not replace the advice of a doctor or psychologist.
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