EFFECTS OF FATIGUE ON BASIC PROCESSES INVOLVED IN HUMAN OPERATOR PERFORMANCE: SIMPLE VIGILANCE AND TARGET DETECTION

THE PURPOSE OF THE INVESTIGATION WAS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF SEVERAL FATIGUE INDUCING SITUATIONS ON PERFORMANCE OF A SIMPLE VISUAL VIGILANCE TASK AND A TARGET DETECTION TASK. SUBJECTS THAT HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN EXPOSED TO ONE OF THREE FATIGUE CONDITIONS, AS WELL AS NON-FATIGUED CONTROL SUBJECTS, WERE TESTED IN EITHER A VIGILANCE TASK OR TARGET DETECTION TASK. THE FATIGUE CONDITIONS WERE TERMED /A/ MENTAL FATIGUE, IN WHICH SUBJECTS WORKED MENTAL MULTIPLICATION PROBLEMS FOR FOUR HOURS, /B/ DRIVING CONDITION A, IN WHICH SUBJECTS OPERATED A DRIVING SIMULATOR FOR FOUR HOURS, AND /C/ DRIVING CONDITION B, IN WHICH SUBJECTS OPERATED THE DRIVING SIMULATOR AND PERFORMED A VIGILANCE TASK SIMULTANEOUSLY FOR FOUR HOURS. THE CONTROL SUBJECTS WERE EXPOSED TO NONE OF THESE TASKS, BUT WERE TESTED IMEDIATELY UPON REPORTING TO THE LABORATORY. THE VIGILANCE TASK WAS A SIMPLE VISUAL TASK WITH THE SUBJECT REQUIRED TO REPORT THE PRESENCE OF A SMALL FLASH OF LIGHT THAT APPEARED AT IRREGULAR INTERVALS ON A SCREEN. IN THE TARGET DETECTION TASK, THE SUBJECT WAS TO DETECT AND REPORT A CRITICAL TARGET AMONG A BACKGROUND ARRAY OF NON-CRITICAL FIGURES OR TARGETS. RESULTS SHOWED THAT SUBJECTS EXPOSED TO THE FATIGUE CONDITIONS TENDED TO MISS MORE SIGNALS IN THE VIGILANCE TASK THAN DID THE NON-FATIGUED SUBJECTS AND THAT SUBJECTS EXPOSED TO THE MENTAL FATIGUE CONDITION SHOWED THE LARGEST PERFORMANCE DECREMENT. IN THE TARGET DETECTION TASK, FATIGUED SUBJECTS ALSO MADE MORE ERRORS THAN CONTROL SUBJECTS. SUBJECTS EXPOSED TO THE MENTAL FATIGUE CONDITION TENDED TO MAKE MORE ERRORS THAN SUBJECTS EXPOSED TO THE DRIVING CONDITIONS AND THE CONTROL SUBJECTS. /AUTHOR/

• Record URL:
  • http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrr/1964/55/55-002.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Heimstra, Norman W
  • Mast, Truman M
  • Larrabee, Larry L
• Publication Date: 1964

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References;
• Pagination: pp 17-20
• Monograph Title: Driving simulation 1963
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Record
  • Issue Number: 55
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Driver performance; Drivers; Driving simulators; Fatigue (Physiological condition); Human factors; Mental condition; Personnel performance; Statistical sampling; Tracking systems; Visual perception
• Old TRIS Terms: Control sampling; Multiplication; Target detection
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00219565
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Dec 12 1994 12:00AM