Communication and Cooperation — Page 260, Lesson 423

I want to walk you through the two main types of questions we use in aviation communication and cooperation: implicit questions and explicit questions. We’ve already seen that implicit questions are open-ended and carry hidden assumptions. Now let’s look at their advantages and disadvantages, and then contrast them with explicit questions. Starting with the advantages of an implicit question. First, the deductions of the questioner are checked — meaning when you ask an open-ended question, you can verify whether your own reasoning is correct by hearing the responder’s thought process. Second, knowledge is extracted from the responder, and that knowledge can be assessed by the questioner. This is why the implicit question is widely used in teaching and instructing techniques — it draws out what the other person knows. But there are several disadvantages. The responder may not fully understand the implications of the question and may consider irrelevant factors, or indeed completely incorrect factors. Discussion may follow, and that can delay a conclusion. That discussion may also divert attention away from staying focused on the main problem. Implicit questions are prone to misunderstandings which may not be identified — in other words, the sender and receiver may be talking at cross purposes without realising it. They are also prone to diversions which may not be detected. Now let’s move to explicit questions, also called closed questions. Explicit questions pose no such restrictions — they are straightforward. If they do not require further clarification, we assume either that the responder has, or can quickly obtain, all the information necessary to answer, or that the question itself contains all the information essential for an informed response. An example of an explicit question might be: “Are we maintaining the correct track?” That’s a yes-or-no, closed question. The advantages of explicit questions are: question and response is normally quicker. The meaning of the question is usually clear. Both questioner and responder are on the “same wavelength”. And misunderstandings are quickly identified and clarified. The disadvantages are: important factors may be overlooked and therefore not discussed. Also, the assumption that the question contains enough information for an informed answer may be incorrect — you might think you’ve given all the needed context, but you haven’t. So in summary: implicit questions are great for teaching and checking understanding, but risk confusion and delay. Explicit questions are fast and clear, but can miss important details. In the cockpit, you’ll need to choose the right type depending on the situation.