A framework and serious game for decision making in stressful situations; a fire evacuation scenario

Abstract

Decision making is a core cognitive process of human behaviour that is often affected by stress. Whilst we make several decisions on a daily basis, firefighters in particular are called to make important decisions in a split second and within life-threatening settings. Stress can therefore impact their ability to perform and carry out their job. The implications of stress are similarly important in other settings requiring high-vigilance. In this paper, we aim to contribute to efforts to better train firefighters in decision making in stressful situations through a serious game solution. The game was designed based on the Stress Exposure Training (SET) approach and in accordance with typical stressors identified in the literature. Those were then mapped to relevant game mechanics. The evaluation of the resulting game was twofold: A. to assess its ability to increase participants’ stress level, and B. to investigate whether decision making performance would be improved for participants under stress. The proposed framework and the prototype were evaluated through empirical research that consisted of the participants’ self-reported stress levels using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Adults (STAI) and the participants’ physiological measurements, namely galvanic skin response (GSR) and heart rate (HR). Our results demonstrate the potential of serious games to assist towards training of firefighters to make better decisions under stressful situations. Our findings are of wider importance as they contribute to ongoing efforts to improve decision making under stress in a variety of settings and scenarios.