Signal Detection Theory Analysis of Quality Control Inspector Performance

Abstract

The signal detection theory (SDT) model of observer decision making, developed in sensory psychology, is applied to problems of evaluating industrial quality control inspector performance. The similarity between the SDT model of the inspector and quality control acceptance sampling theory is discussed. Methods of calculating SDT measures of inspector fault detection ability and subjective quality standards are shown, and examples are given to illustrate the usefulness of these measures for diagnosing the causes of unsatisfactory inspector performance.