Title
The Peripheral Detection Task (PDT): On-line measurement of driver cognitive workload and selective attention
Author
van der Horst, A.R.A.
Martens, M.H.
Contributor
Rupp, G.L. (editor)
Publication year
2010
Abstract
Peaks in workload while driving might have immediate safety implications. The Peripheral Detection Task (PDT) has shown to be a sensitive objective workload measure. Drivers have to respond to the onset of a peripherally presented simple visual stimulus (red square or LED) by pressing a finger switch, on average, once every 4 seconds. The more demanding the task, the more cues are missed and the longer the response times to the PDT. This chapter focuses on measuring driver’s cognitive workload by the PDT and shows the method’s sensitivity for measuring variations in workload dependent on road and driving conditions or driving while interacting with in-vehicle devices. These examples include both driving simulator and on-the-road studies and their results favor the ‘cognitive tunneling’ hypothesis (in contrast to perceptual tunneling), viz. that the PDT especially measures the (cognitive) selectivity of attention.
Subject
Human
PCS - Perceptual and Cognitive Systems
BSS - Behavioural and Societal Sciences
traffic
Traffic safety
Attention
Distraction
Workload
Driver behaviour
To reference this document use:
http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:a947e676-98e1-47dd-ac6c-b3e47ae0ee71
TNO identifier
426327
Publisher
SAE International, Warrendale
Source
Performance metrics for Assessing Driver Distraction: The Questfor Improved Road Safety, 73-89
Document type
bookPart