In the years since Bjerner’s study, cognitive error taxonomies have
been developed to enable distinctions to be drawn between different
forms of error (Senders & Moray, 1991). The Skill-Rule-Knowledge
(SRK) framework (Rasmussen, 1983) is one of the most widely used error
taxonomies. According to Rasmussen, skill-based errors occur during the
performance of actions controlled by automatic or practiced sensorimotor
routines, largely outside conscious awareness. A common example
of such an “absent-minded” error is habit capture, in which a routinely
performed action sequence is inadvertently activated, contrary to the
person’s intentions. Rule-based errors occur in familiar situations where
the person’s behavior is guided by explicit or implicit learned rules or
expertise that operates at an “if–then” level.