Detecting Threat-Related Intentional Actions of Others: Effects of Image Quality, Response Mode, and Target Cuing on Vigilance

Three experiments examined the vigilance performance of participants watching videos depicting intentional actions of an individual's hand reaching for and grasping an object-involving transporting or using either a gun or a hairdryer-in order to detect infrequent threat-related actions. Partic...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of experimental psychology. Applied 2009-12, Vol.15 (4), p.275-290
Main Authors: Parasuraman, Raja, de Visser, Ewart, Clarke, Ellen, McGarry, W. Ryan, Hussey, Elizabeth, Shaw, Tyler, Thompson, James C
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Analysis of Variance
Attention
Attention - physiology
Attitudes
Control Groups
Cues
Detection
Experiments
Female
Human
Humans
Intention
Intentional action
Male
Motion Perception
Motion Perception - physiology
Photic Stimulation
Psychomotor Performance - physiology
Reaction Time - physiology
Recognition (Learning)
Recognition (Psychology) - physiology
Responses
Statistical Analysis
Stimuli
Threat
Time Factors
Time on Task
Videotapes
Vigilance
Workloads
Young Adults
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Summary:Three experiments examined the vigilance performance of participants watching videos depicting intentional actions of an individual's hand reaching for and grasping an object-involving transporting or using either a gun or a hairdryer-in order to detect infrequent threat-related actions. Participants indicated detection of target actions either manually or by withholding response. They also rated their subjective mental workload before and after each vigilance task. Irrespective of response mode, the detection rate of intentional threats declined over time on task and subjective workload increased, but only under visually degraded viewing conditions. This vigilance decrement was attenuated by temporal cues that were 75% valid in predicting a subsequent target action and eliminated with 100% valid cues. The findings indicate that detection of biological motion targets, and threat-related intentional actions in particular, although not attention sensitive under normal viewing conditions, is subject to vigilance decrement under degraded viewing conditions. The results are compatible with the view that the decrement in detecting threat-related intentional actions reflects increasing failure of attention allocation processes over time.
ISSN:1076-898X
1939-2192
DOI:10.1037/a0017132