Vigilance: The Problem of Sustained Attention

Vigilance: The Problem of Sustained Attention deals with vigilance and how the ability to sustain attention is influenced by certain definite conditions of the external and internal environment. Topics covered range from factors affecting vigilance performance to the physiological correlates of vigilance, theories of vigilance performance, and the relationship between arousal and vigilance performance.

This volume is comprised of six chapters and begins with an overview of research on vigilance behavior, followed by a discussion on some of the factors affecting vigilance performance, including signal frequency and personality. Subsequent chapters explore physiological correlates of vigilance such as galvanic skin resistance and cortical evoked potentials; reinforcement theory, expectancy theory, and other theories of vigilance performance; and arousal theory and the phenomenon of time error. The final chapter considers some of the conditions that improve vigilance performance, along with the correlation between vigilance and arousal.

This book will be of interest to psychologists.

1. Introduction

2. Factors Influencing Vigilance Performance

A. Signal Frequency

B. Stimulus Frequency

C. Signal-to-Stimulus Ratio

D. Signal Magnitude

E. Signal Distribution

F. Task Complexity

G. Knowledge of Results

H. Personality

I. Sensory Restriction

J. Noise

K. Location of Critical Signals

L. Inter- and Intra-Modality Stability of Vigilance Performance

M. Intelligence

N. Age

O. Summary of Additional Findings

3. Physiological Correlates of Vigilance Performance

A. Electroencephalography

B. Galvanic Skin Resistance (GSR)

C. Cortical Evoked Potentials

D. Other Physiological Indices

4. Theories of Vigilance Performance

A. Inhibition Theory

B. Reinforcement Theory

C. Filter Theory

D. Expectancy Theory

E. Arousal Theory

F. Signal Detection Theory

G. IAF Signal Detection Theory

5. Related Theories and Phenomena

A. Arousal Theory

B. Time Error

6. Conclusions and Discussion

A. Factors Which Influence Vigilance Performance

B. The Relationship between Arousal and Vigilance Performance

C. Towards a Theoretical Understanding

D. The Need for a New Approach

Bibliography

Index

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