# James Reason

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British psychologist (1938–2025)

James Reason CBE Born James Tootle (1938-05-01)1 May 1938 Garston, Hertfordshire, England Died 4 February 2025(2025-02-04) (aged 86) Slough, England Alma mater University of Manchester University of Leicester Known for Swiss cheese model Spouse Rea Jaari ​ (m. 1964)​ Children 2 Scientific career Fields Psychology Institutions University of Leicester[1] University of Manchester

**James Tootle Reason** [CBE](/source/Order_of_the_British_Empire) (né **Tootle**; 1 May 1938 – 4 February 2025) was a British professor of [psychology](/source/Psychology) at the [University of Manchester](/source/University_of_Manchester), from where he graduated in 1962 and was a tenured professor from 1977 until 2001.

Reason propounded the [Swiss cheese model](/source/Swiss_cheese_model) using the concept of layered security, used in risk analysis in many areas including aviation safety and emergency service organizations.

## Background

James Tootle was born in [Garston, Hertfordshire](/source/Garston%2C_Hertfordshire), on 1 May 1938.[1][2] His father was killed during [The Blitz](/source/The_Blitz), and his mother died several years later, leaving him to be raised by his maternal grandfather, Thomas Reason, whose surname he adopted.[1] He was educated at the University of Manchester and the [University of Leicester](/source/University_of_Leicester).[1]

## Career

Reason wrote books on [human error](/source/Human_error),[3] including [absent-mindedness](/source/Absent-mindedness), [aviation human factors](/source/Human_factors_in_aviation_safety), [maintenance errors](/source/Maintenance), and [risk management](/source/Risk_management) for organizational accidents.[4] In 2003, he was awarded an honorary [DSc](/source/Doctor_of_Science) by the [University of Aberdeen](/source/University_of_Aberdeen). He was a Fellow of the [British Academy](/source/British_Academy), the [British Psychological Society](/source/British_Psychological_Society), the [Royal Aeronautical Society](/source/Royal_Aeronautical_Society), and the [Royal College of General Practitioners](/source/Royal_College_of_General_Practitioners). He was appointed a [Commander of the Order of the British Empire](/source/Commander_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire) (CBE) in the [2003 New Year Honours](/source/2003_New_Year_Honours) "for services to Reducing the Risk in Healthcare."[5] In 2011, he was elected an honorary Safety and Reliability Society fellow.[6]

Swiss cheese model of accident causation with example barrier layers

Among his many contributions is the introduction of the [Swiss cheese model](/source/Swiss_cheese_model), a conceptual framework for the description of accidents based on the notion that accidents will happen only if multiple barriers fail, thus creating a path from an initiating cause to the ultimate, unwanted consequences, such as harm to people, assets, the environment, etc.[3] Reason also described the first fully developed theory of a [just culture](/source/Just_culture) in his 1997 book, *Managing the Risks of Organizational Accidents.*[4]

## Personal life and death

In 1964, Reason married educational psychologist Rea Jaari, daughter of [Ruben Jaari](/source/Ruben_Jaari). The couple had two children.[1] He died from pneumonia at a [Slough](/source/Slough) hospital, on 4 February 2025, at the age of 86.[1][7]

## Bibliography

### Books

- *Human Error,* Cambridge University Press. 1990. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-521-31419-0](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-521-31419-0)

- *Managing the Risks of Organizational Accidents,* Ashgate,1997. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-84014-105-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-84014-105-4)

- *Managing Maintenance Error: A Practical Guide*, CRC Press. 2003. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-7546-1591-0](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7546-1591-0)

- *The Human Contribution,* Routledge*.* 2008. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-7546-7402-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7546-7402-3)

- *A Life in Error,* Routledge. 2013. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-4724-1841-8](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-4724-1841-8)

- *Beyond Aviation Human Factors*, Routledge. 2016. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-84014-948-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-84014-948-7)

- *Organizational Accidents Revisited,* CRC Press*.* 2016. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-4724-4768-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-4724-4768-5)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Rosenwald_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Rosenwald_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Rosenwald_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Rosenwald_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Rosenwald_1-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Rosenwald_1-5) Rosenwald, Michael S. (13 March 2025). ["James Reason, Who Used Swiss Cheese to Explain Human Error, Dies at 86"](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/13/science/james-reason-dead.html). *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. Retrieved 13 March 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** [Sumwait, Robert L.](/source/Robert_L._Sumwalt_(U.S._government_official)) (1 May 2018). ["The Age of Reason"](https://safetycompass.wordpress.com/2018/05/01/the-age-of-reason/). *[NTSB](/source/NTSB) Safety Compass*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20201218122017/https://safetycompass.wordpress.com/2018/05/01/the-age-of-reason/) from the original on 18 December 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2024.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_3-1) Reason, James (1990). *Human Error*. Cambridge, England: [Cambridge University Press](/source/Cambridge_University_Press). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-521-30669-0](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-521-30669-0).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:2_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:2_4-1) Reason, James T. (1997). *Managing the Risks of Organizational Accidents*. Farnham, England: [Ashgate Publishing](/source/Ashgate_Publishing). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-84014-105-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-84014-105-4).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-GBR_5-0)** ["No. 56797"](https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/56797/supplement/8). *[The London Gazette](/source/The_London_Gazette)* (Supplement). 31 December 2002. p. 8.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:0_6-0)** Reason, James (2013). *A Life in Error: From Little Slips to Big Disasters*. Farnham, England and Burlington, Vt.: [Ashgate Publishing](/source/Ashgate_Publishing). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781472418432](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781472418432).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["The Absent-minded Professor Who Made a Safer World"](https://www.flightsafetyaustralia.com/2025/02/the-absent-minded-professor-who-made-a-safer-world/). *Flight Safety Australia*. 10 February 2025. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20250210120958/https://www.flightsafetyaustralia.com/2025/02/the-absent-minded-professor-who-made-a-safer-world/) from the original on 10 February 2025. Retrieved 10 February 2025.

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