Autonomic nervous system and subjective ratings of strain in air-traffic control.
The paper is aimed at studying the perceived strain in professional air-traffic controllers both through self-evaluation and physiological indicators from the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The number of aircraft to be monitored was the main independent variable and could evolve at random within 1 and 10. Five ANS variables were recorded continuously in 25 participants while they handled real traffic: skin potential, skin conductance, skin blood flow, skin temperature and instantaneous heart rate. The tonic level of each physiological variable was averaged to match the times spent monitoring a constant number of aircraft. After the session, participants reacted in compliance with the NASA-TLX rating scale. Subjective ratings and physiological values were closely correlated to the number of aircraft, especially when data were standardized thus reducing inter-subjects differences in baseline levels. Results provide objective information to prevent air-traffic controllers from overloaded situations as well as to improve passengers' safety.
Collet
C
C
Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CRIS EA 647-Mental Processes and Performance, Villeurbanne Cedex, France. christian.collet@univ-lyon1.fr
Averty
P
P
Dittmar
A
A
D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000328:Adult; D001341:Autonomic Nervous System; D001359:Aviation; D003657:Decision Making; D005712:Galvanic Skin Response / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D016272:Occupational Health; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012881:Skin Temperature; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis