Cognitive Ergonomics

VIGILANCE
 - Operator’s ability to detect signals over time
period

What is - The performance of the operator in a vigilance

VIGILANCE ?
task is gauged by his/her hit rate and false alarm
rate.

- An operator loses vigilance, for example, if there

had been many defects that reach the customer it
may mean a low hit rate brought about by
boredom.
VIGILANCE TASK
-Operator is required to detect signals over a long period of time
ex: Quality control, security guard detecting a robber/abnormality.

Signals coming from the environment

-can be characterized according to the rate it is perceived by the operator

Infrequent – ex: rate of defect in a production line (don’t know when it will
appear, but we know it will happen)
Intermittent – ex: image in a computer game (we know what image will appear,
there is also a range in time)
Unpredictable – ex: presence of a bank robber
VIGILANCE TASK
-Operator is required to detect signals over a long period of time
ex: Quality control, security guard detecting a robber/abnormality.

Signals coming from the environment

-can also be characterized according to the ease of detecting these signals

The signal may be clear or full of noise.

An example of a clear signal is a distinctive mark of a person from a crowd. If
the person is very tall, for example, s/he can be easily detected.
However, a person with common traits will mix with the others and difficult to
find among other people.
VIGILANCE TASK
-Operator is required to detect signals over a long period of time
ex: Quality control, security guard detecting a robber/abnormality.

Signals may also be difficult to detect

- low volume, not very different from background etc.

Challenge
- to maintain vigilance level in a repetitive job.
VIGILANCE LEVEL
A state of high vigilance occurs when a person is in
full attention such as at the beginning of the job when
- the state of the nervous system that the person is fresh and well-rested.
mediates performance in vigilance tasks.
High vigilance = a state of “readiness”/alert

- Performance at one time -A state of low vigilance occurs when the person
is already tired and is unmindful of the things
that are happening in the workplace.

Low vigilance =inattentive, fatigued

VIGILANCE DECREMENT

- A deterioration in the ability of the

observer to remain vigilant for critical
signals over time

-From the beginning to the end of a job

shift a person experiences vigilance
decrement due to various factors
including fatigue.
 Trend in operators’ performance in vigilance situation
- There is a general trend in the vigilance
level of operators in the workplace
- Operators show lower vigilance levels
than desirable/desired by employers
- The vigilance level sometimes decline
steeply during the first hour or so of the
watch.
Example: This can be seen in the way
security guards inspect the baggage of
people entering the mall in a haphazard
way. This can probably because of their
expectation of a bomb that may be found
inside their bags.
The vigilance level of the security
guards even decline towards the end
of their shift (near 5pm) when they
even skip inspecting the bags of other
people or converse while inspecting
the bags.
 1. Inspection Situation
- Events occur at regular intervals,
normally happening
Two Vigilance - The frequency of event is the ratio of the
targets and the number of events.

Situations Event frequency = # of targets / # of

events
-Time not taken into account
- Example: circuit-board inspector
Some boards are bad-targets
Each board is an event

-Example: if a production line is known to

produce 10% defects, then this represents
the event frequency
 2. Free-response Situation
- situation the occurrence of an event is uncertain
and unpredictable; Target event may occur at any
time

Two Vigilance
- The event is a function of time
- Example: the occurrence of typhoons, aircrafts
that are about to collide, monitoring for incoming

Situations threats, missiles

In typhoon example, signals that do not qualify

as typhoons are not counted.
As such, it is difficult to get the event rate such
as in the inspection situation.

-non-events are not taken into account/ Non-

events not defined
Event frequency= # of targets / unit time (e.g.,
minute)
 1. Sim-Suc
- In simultaneous situation, target example shown
- In successive situation, observer must remember
target

Another Two
Vigilance 2. Sensory-Cognitive
- Vigilance situation can also be classified
according to the capability that the operator uses

Situations in the process of perception. - In sensory

situation, signals represent changes in visual or
auditory intensity o the operator uses his/her
senses such as listening to morse code signal o no
cognitive processing - In cognitive situation,
signals are changes in letters/numbers o the
operator uses higher cognitive abilities such as in
proofreading
Types of Stimuli:

1. Cognitive Stimulus 2. Sensory Stimulus

- requires reading and - requires perception
understanding - It is difficult to make mistakes in perceiving cognitive
stimuli compared to sensory stimuli.
 - As mentioned earlier, vigilance is
measured by the number of hitssuch as
in the signal detection theory.
MEASURING - Signal detection theory w/concept of
VIGILANCE time

PERFORMANCE - The performance of the operator,

however, is influenced by the bias of
the operator and decrease in
sensitivity.
Factors
Affecting
Sensitivity
 1. Target Uncertainty

- affects level but not decrement

- If the observer expects to receive signals at regular

Factors
intervals, then the operator will be more vigilant
- Example: looking for violators in the color-coding
scheme. Since there are many drivers that are expected to

Affecting violate this, police officers are more vigilant

Sensitivity
 2. Signal Strength
- If the strength of the signal is strong, then the
operator can easily detect the signal.
- Example: signal detection experiment. The ten

Factors dotted line is too difficult to see. In real life, if robbers

comply to a certain mental model, then it is easier to

Affecting increase sensitivity.

Sensitivity
 3. Event Rate
-speed of the event also affects the sensitivity of the
operator
- ex: speed of conveyor belt

Factors - If the event is slow, the operator has the cognitive

capability to take note of defects
- if the event rate is fast, the operator cannot identify most
Affecting of the targets hits.

Sensitivity
 4. Simultaneous tasks

- produce greater sensitivity, no decrement (because an

example is shown)
Factors - If the operator is given a guide during inspection
especially for tasks that involve sensory evaluation, the

Affecting performance will have consistency

- Example: if a color guide is given when sorting shirts

Sensitivity according to the right shade, the operator will not have a
difficult time identifying the target.
However, if this information is left to the memory of the
inspector, the image will deteriorate as time goes by.
This would result in difficulty in identifying the right
target.
 4. Simultaneous tasks

Factors
Affecting
Sensitivity
 5. Automized task
- Decrement eliminated
- If the inspection task is done automatically or using a
machine, it will not be difficult to find the right target
- The machine is not capable of feeling fatigue and this is

Factors the reason for the constant level of sensitivity over time
- if the inspection is done by an operator, sensitivity is

Affecting expected to decrease as a result of fatigue or boredom.

Sensitivity
 6. Cognitive Stimuli

Factors -Sensitivity increment with cognitive stimuli

- In cognitive tasks, sensitivity increases over time because

Affecting of the learning factor

- Example: finding grammatical mistakes in a report

Sensitivity
Operator’s performance gets better as time goes by
because s/he is gaining expertise
-for sensory stimuli this is not the case because the
strength of the sensory image diminishes over time.
 6. Cognitive Stimuli

Factors
Affecting
Sensitivity
 1. Sensitivity Loss: Fatigue Theory (Broadbent,
1971)

- More miss than hits after time because tired

- If a subject is required to sustain his attention,

Theories of ex: looking at a certain image for a length of

time, fatigue will set in and the signal will be

VIGILANCE
missed.
Continued vigilance causes fatigue,
attentional lapses
- Successive tasks are more fatiguing than
simultaneous tasks.
- Fatigue increases variability of S+N distributions
because the subject sometimes cannot identify the
target. The memory becomes blur and the subject
cannot remember the guideline.
 2. Sensitivity Loss: Sustained Demand Theory
(Parasuraman, 1979)

- Sustained attentional demand, or working

memory load
Theories of - Leads to demand on processing resources
—may also be fatiguing

VIGILANCE - Sustained demand increases variability of S+N

distributions
- Do multiple tasks over time, require demand
processing from different sources, getting more
tired.
Main reason of getting tired because multiple
demand
Factors Affecting Bias
1. Increases in Target Probability
makes observer more liberal
(note no effect on decrement)

Example: If the operator expects

more hits to encounter during
inspection, s/he is more likely to
say there is a signal. However, if
the target is less likely to happen,
then the operator always says
“there is no signal”.
Factors Affecting Bias
2. Increases in Payoffs makes
observer more liberal (note no
effect on decrement)
- If the cost of not making a hit is
excessive, the operator is more likely to
say there is a signal.
- Example: Security guards at the
airport are very cautious inspecting
baggage because they are aware that
the cost of letting in a terrorist is very
high.
The cost is not only monetary in
nature as it also involves the lost of
lives and reputation for the airline
and the country.
As such, the authorities are willing
to have delays and increase
manpower in order to curb
terrorism.
Factors Affecting Bias
2. Increases in Payoffs makes
observer more liberal (note no
effect on decrement)
Theories of
- Vigilance decrement of a person is due to shift in criterion and
VIGILANCE not reduced sensitivity
People set beta based on their expectation of signal
frequency. However, if they think they missed a signal, they
will increase their beta (say there is no signal).
- Ps(S) subjective probability of signal. If signal missed Ps(S) goes
1. Bias Increment: down
Expectancy Theory - Vicious circle happens because when the subject thinks that a
signal was missed, the beta will go upward. This means that the
(Baker, 1961) subject will say that there is no signal because the signal is
already missed and there will be greater chance of misses.
Theories of - Decreased arousal reduces both variability
and mean of N and S+N (signal+noise)
VIGILANCE distributions
- Operator really is tired, beta actually shrinks
the evidence that operators look for does
2. Bias Increment: not change.
Arousal Theory - Constant sensitivity, effective criterion shift
(Welford, 1968) - Predicts lower P(H) and P(FA)
- Example: In the baggage inspection task,
the operator of the equipment is aware of the
shades and shapes that signals contraband.
Theories of If s/he sees it in the monitor, the
VIGILANCE traveler will be apprehended.
However, if the person is not alert
(aroused), s/he will not be able to
2. Bias Increment:
see the signals that are on the
Arousal Theory monitor.
(Welford, 1968) If the operator is sleepy, signals will
be missed because there is a great
percentage of time that s/he is
yawning or closing his/her eyes.
Theories of
- The evidence variable shrinks, while the criterion
remains the same. Percent of hits and false alarm are
reduced. But the sensitivity d’ remains the same (in
VIGILANCE standard scores)

2. Bias Increment:
Arousal Theory
(Welford, 1968)
Theories of
VIGILANCE

2. Bias Increment:
Arousal Theory
(Welford, 1968)

- Beta shrinks, probability of

getting a hit decreases
 In order to improve vigilance performance,
there is a need to increase the sensitivity.
This can be done by showing target samples,
reducing the event rate, training the operator
to recognize targets and reducing the number

IMPROVING of potential targets.

The key to improving performance is to address

VIGILANCE
the sensory and memory limitations of the
operator.
As time progresses, the operator experiences

PERFORMANCE fatigue and this can cause a reduction in

performance.
If human operators are not able to comply with
the demands of the job, it is worth considering
the prospect of automation.
 Signal Enhancement

IMPROVING Sensitivity can also be increased by enhancing

VIGILANCE
the signal. Items can be coded in several ways
so as to facilitate isolation and inspection. If the
signal involves the auditory sense, the sound

PERFORMANCE level can be increased in order to minimize

mistakes.
 Adjusting Bias: Shift in Response
Criterion
Another way to improve performance is to

IMPROVING
adjust the bias of the operator.
If s/he is bias, the optimal beta is not
reached. Either there is a low chance of hit

VIGILANCE or a high chance of false alarm.

The operators should be trained to be

PERFORMANCE sensitive to their performance so they can

properly adjust the direction of their bias.
They should also be given information of
the target probability so that they would
know the right level of performance.