In incident investigations, what is root cause analysis?

• A. Focusing on assigning blame
• B. Focusing on root causes to prevent recurrence
• C. Documenting costs
• D. Ignoring systemic issues

Answer: (B)

Identifying underlying factors that allowed the incident to occur, so you can prevent recurrence. Root cause analysis looks beyond the immediate incident to understand how conditions in processes, equipment, people, and the organization combined to create the event. The aim is learning and improvement by implementing corrective actions that address fundamental deficiencies—such as gaps in maintenance, training, or safety barriers—so similar incidents don’t happen again. This approach contrasts with blaming individuals or simply recording costs, and it recognizes that systemic issues can create latent conditions that enable failures. For example, if a machine failed because preventive maintenance was skipped, the analysis would examine maintenance planning, scheduling, and oversight, and propose process changes rather than punishment. The focus is on preventing recurrence by addressing root causes.