A Cognitive Test Battery as a Performance Predictor of a Complex Task Requiring Sustained Attention: A Pilot Study
Abstract
The military relies on operators to efficiently identify threats to mission success and safety. Sonar operators search for threats, including hostile submarines, for extended periods, introducing the potential for a vigilance decrement, i.e., a decrease in performance over time. The U.S. Navy could benefit from a means to identify early which sonar operator candidates would be most likely to sustain high vigilance performance for prolonged periods. Currently, the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB), a test similar to a standardized intelligence exam, is used to guide military Service Members career tracks and specialties. However, the ASVAB may not adequately assess the vigilance or visual search abilities necessary for sonar or similar tasks, and a complementary assessment may improve upon the ASVABs predictive validity for said tasks. This exploratory study investigated a 30-minute, 10-task cognitive test battery's ability to predict performance in a long duration, complex task, the Multi-Attribute Task Battery (MATB-II). The MATB-II demands sustained attention and simulates many of the demands of a submarine watch-station. MATB-II performance declined over time, confirming subjects vigilance decrement. A regression using performance on the cognitive battery found that such performance accounted for 51% of the variance in overall MATB-II performance and 31% of the variance in sustained attention. This work suggests a 30-minute cognitive test battery may assist in identifying operators well-suited to performing comparable complex and attention-demanding vigilance tasks.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 31, 2022
- Accession Number
- AD1183747
Entities
People
- Chad Peltier
- David Gever
- Dawn Berger-debrodt
- Jeffrey Bolkhovsky
- Krystina Diaz
- Margaret Wise
- Sylvia Guillory
Organizations
- Naval Submarine Medical Research Laboratory