Cardiac autonomic control during simulated driving with a concurrent verbal working memory task.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of the study was to illustrate sensitivity and diagnosticity differences between cardiac measures and lane-keeping measures of driving performance.


BACKGROUND
Previous research suggests that physiological measures can be sensitive to the effects of driving and side task performance and diagnostic of the source of the attentional demands. We hypothesized that increases in side task difficulty would elicit physiological change without reduction of driving task performance and that the side task demands would elicit patterns ofautonomic activity that map to specific attentional processing resources.


METHODS
Separately and concurrently, thirty-two participants performed a simulated driving task and verbal working memory task (with two levels of difficulty, 0 back and 3 back) separately and concurrently. Attentional demands were assessed through physiological and performance measures.


RESULTS
Cardiac measures reflected changes in attentional demand from single- to dual-task driving with an n-back task, whereas lane-keeping measures did not. Furthermore, patterns of autonomic activity elicited by driving, n-back task, and dual-task driving with a 3-back task were consistent with our predictions about autonomic activity.


CONCLUSIONS
Changes in cardiac measures without changes in lane-keeping measures provide evidence that cardiac measures can be sensitive to hidden costs in attention that do not manifest in coarse measures of driving performance. Furthermore, correct predictions regarding the patterns of autonomic activity elicited suggests that cardiac measures can serve as diagnostic tools for attention assessment.


CONCLUSIONS
Because of the demonstrated differences in sensitivity and diagnosticity, researchers should consider the use of cardiac measures in addition to driving performance measures when studying attention in a driving simulator environment.
Lenneman
John K
JK
Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, Michigan, USA. lenneljk@cmich.edu
Backs
Richard W
RW
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology; D001334:Automobile Driving; D001341:Autonomic Nervous System / Q000502:physiology*; D002320:Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; D003198:Computer Simulation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D012143:Respiratory Physiological Phenomena; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D055815:Young Adult