 |
|
|
Background Human error often arises from mistaken beliefs about the state of the world. These beliefs, like other aspects of cognition, are not directly observable, posing a problem for a cognitive analysis that could reveal the source of error. The pattern of information acquisition from visual displays, as revealed by patterns of eye fixation, promises to shed light on the cognitive processes that shape operator behavior, and lead to the generation of human error. Objectives The goal of this element is to develop direct tests of the usefulness of eye movements for inferring behaviors of interest. If successful, further efforts will be directed at developing a system for using eye fixation patterns to infer cognitive state that can be applied to man-in-the-loop simulations. The ultimate goal is a validated technique for finer analysis of operator information gathering strategies. Approach We first explore tasks for which the information requirements are well understood. For example, by having controllers make judgments that entail the use of altitude information we can test whether eye movements directly reflect information gathering. Since altitude is available only in the data block, fixations necessary to read the information will be necessary. If successful in using eye fixations to infer cognitive goals, we will use a similar paradigm to examine conditions under which controllers actively seek information as opposed to retrieving information from memory. Models of human behavior have difficulty in deciding when information will be gathered anew or existing information retrieved from memory. By varying the relative difficulties and length of time since a particular piece of information was used, it will be possible to better understand how mistaken impressions of aircraft state can occur in the face of clearly disconfirmatory evidence. Level 3 Milestones FY98 Set-up of Eye-Movement Laboratory. Points of Contact
|
|
|