The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) awarded a $149,978 firm fixed-price purchase order to George Mason University on September 26, 2023, for research addressing cognitive biases in regulatory safety evaluation. The contract, which runs through October 31, 2025, supports the NRC's objective to enhance human consistency in risk-informed decision-making by neutralizing the effects of cognitive biases on regulatory safety assessments. This no-set-aside award reflects the NRC's civilian mission to improve the safety and effectiveness of nuclear regulatory processes through evidence-based research and mitigation strategies. The work is being performed at George Mason University's Fairfax, Virginia location.
Under this contract, George Mason University is collaborating with subcontractor RAD Science Solutions to deliver comprehensive research and deliverables including technical reports on bias mitigation methods and their applicability to NRC regulatory activities, a pilot bias mitigation study conducted with NRC personnel, and knowledge elicitation studies to assess current NRC processes and vulnerabilities. The final deliverable is a consolidated report documenting the research findings, a comprehensive transformation plan for implementing validated countermeasures to cognitive bias, implementation requirements, and recommendations for updates to NRC regulatory guidance documents and staff capability development. Monthly technical and financial reporting to the NRC is required throughout contract performance.