Optimal characteristics of inserted graphic objects in stimulating CCTV operator vigilance and performance
Year: 2012
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Human vigilance is critical to the successful operation of many technical systems that are important to the functioning of society.These include air traffic control, radar and sonar, Xray applications, long distance driving, and closed circuit television (CCTV) monitoring (Donald, 2001).Operators working in these types of environments are required to sustain their attention for long periods of time and maintain high levels of alertness (Warm, Parasuraman, & Matthews, 2008).The attention requirements of this type of work impose considerable demands on information processing, attention resources and working memory (Parasuraman, 1979;Warm, Dember, & Hancock, 1996).Further, stress and fatigue commonly occur in vigilance intensive positions (Sawin & Scerbo, 1995;Szalma, Warm, Matthews, Dember, Weiler, Meier, & Eggemeier, 2004).Numerous factors impact on the detection rates of operators of systems requiring vigilance, and their performance is frequently less than optimal (Donald & Andrew, 2003;Donald, Andrew, & Landgrebe, 2007;Edkins & Pollock, 1997;Keval & Sasse, 2006;Wells, Allard, & Wilson, 2006).Aligning human performance and the technological potential of these systems represents a major design and implementation challenge (Keval, 2006).CCTV surveillance is one of the contexts where vigilance is important.The social relevance of CCTV and the fact that it provides a rich context for studying vigilance and visual search makes it an ideal area for vigilance research.CCTV forms a base from which findings can be applied to other jobs involving visual analysis and vigilance.In the last twenty years CCTV has been used extensively as a tool for improving public safety and protecting critical infrastructure in many countries, such as the United Kingdom (UK), Europe, United States of America (USA), Australia and South Africa.It is used throughout society including town and shopping centres, industrial and commercial settings, transport systems, and prisons (Neil, Thomas, & Baker, 2007).In the future it will be used increasingly in process control (Donald, C., 2008). The effectiveness of CCTV x CHAPTER 2: VIGILANCE THEORIES AND CCTV OPERATOR PERFORMANCEVigilance is a crucial element for system reliability and human safety in human-machine systems (Warm et al., 2008) and provides the overarching framework for the current research.This chapter defines vigilance, discusses selected theories that have been applied to vigilance and examines the trends emerging from vigilance research.Various definitions of vigilance have been proposed, with early writers understanding vigilance as a physiological state.Head (1926, p. 361) defined it as 'a state of high grade efficiency of the central nervous system.'This is consistent with neurologists and physiologists who use the term to refer to 'physiological efficiency' or 'arousal' (Parasuraman, 1984).Although arousal may play a role in vigilance, it is a general state that affects various attention processes in addition to vigilance.Early writers also emphasised the state of alertness required to respond to small changes which occur randomly in the environment (e.g., Mackworth 1957).
Author: Fiona M. Donald
Language: English
Subfield: Social Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W53239481