ESTIMATION OF MOVEMENT AS A FUNCTION OF TARGET SPEED, DISPLAY DISTANCE, AND CONCEALMENT DISTANCE

THIS INVESTIGATION WAS CONDUCTED IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF VELOCITY JUDGMENTS, PARAMETERS AFFECTING THE ACCURACY OF SUCH JUDGMENTS, AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN THE FORM SUCH JUDGMENTS TAKE. THE REACTIONS OF EIGHTEEN SUBJECTS WERE OBSERVED AS THEY REACTED TO A TARGET AS IT TRAVERSED A PRE-SET DISPLAY AND DISAPPEARED FROM VIEW. AS THE TARGET SPOT MOVED OUT OF VISUAL RANGE, A TIMER WAS AUTOMATICALLY ACTIVATED. THE SUBJECTS DEPRESSED A MICROSWITCH TO INDICATE THEIR ESTIMATE OF THE AMOUNT OF TIME REQUIRED FOR THE TARGET SPOT TO REACH WHATEVER GOAL LIGHT WAS ACTIVATED FOR THAT PARTICULAR TRIAL. SUBJECTS WERE DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS FORMED AFTER INSPECTION OF CONSTANT ERROR SCORES IN INITIAL TEST RESPONSES. INSTRUCTIONS TO THE TWO GROUPS WERE IDENTICAL AND EFFORT WAS MADE TO PROVIDE IDENTICAL TEST ENVIRONMENTS. IT WAS OBSERVED THAT WHEN SUBJECTS WERE ASSIGNED TO GROUPS ON THE BASIS OF THE CRITERIA THE GROUPS RESPONDED DIFFERENTIALLY TO AN INCREASE IN CONCEALMENT DISTANCE AS WELL AS TO TARGET SPEED. SUBJECTS IN GROUP I MANIFESTED A SLIGHT INCREASE IN NEGATIVE CONSTANT ERROR AS CONCEALMENT DISTANCE LENGTHENED. GROUP II SHOWED A LARGER INCREASE IN POSITIVE ERROR WITH INCREASES IN CONCEALMENT DISTANCE. SUBJECTS REPORTED THAT THE SLOWEST SPEEDS PRESENTED THE GREATEST DIFFICULTY IN ESTIMATION. IT IS PROPOSED THAT THE DIFFERENTIAL RESPONSE TO TASK DIFFICULTY PRESENTS A TEMPORAL DURATION PHENOMENON. THERE MAY BE PERCEPTUAL PREDISPOSITIONS TOWARD UNDERESTIMATES OR OVERESTIMATES AS A SIMPLE LINEAR FUNCTION OF TEMPORAL DURATION OF JUDGMENT TRIALS. /BPR/

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Hpr, No 4331-071, STATE STUDY NO 634 (67)
• Corporate Authors:

  University of South Dakota, Vermillion

  Vermillion, SD  United States  57069

  South Dakota Department of Transportation

  700 East Broadway Avenue
  Pierre, SD  United States  57501

  Bureau of Public Roads /US

  400 7th Street, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Ellingstad, V S
  • Heimstra, N W
• Publication Date: 1967-12

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automatic control; Distance; Drivers; Errors; Estimating; Field of vision; Human characteristics; Information display systems; Judgment (Human characteristics); Motion; Reaction time; Speed; Timers; Visual perception
• Uncontrolled Terms: Driver characteristics; Driver reaction; Field of view
• Old TRIS Terms: Displays; Parameter
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00224877
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Bureau of Public Roads /US
• Files: TRIS, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Apr 12 1994 12:00AM