Performance of air traffic control specialists (ATCS's) on a laboratory radar monitoring task: An exploratory study of complacency and a comparison of ATCS and non-ATCS performance.

Abstract

The role of the air traffic control specialist (ATCS) in proposed highly automated air traffic systems of the future is currently receiving considerable attention. A prevalent conception is that role of the future controller will be less that of an active planner and more that of a passive responder to alternative courses of action presented by the computerized system. Such a change in role has raised concerns that increased controller complacency, inattentiveness, boredom and reduced readiness to react in emergencies may become serious problems in some of the planned systems. A complex monitoring task was used to study the effect of complacency on attentional processes. The task was designed to approximate an automated air traffic control radar system. Sixteen experienced ATCSs were tested over a 2-hour session, with half assigned to a subject-controlled and half to a computer-controlled condition. Although the subject-controlled appeared to be generally superior to the computer-controlled condition, the differences in target detection time were not significant. Additional comparisons of ATCSs with non-ATCSs on the radar monitoring task revealed that ATCSs were significantly superior to non-ATCSs in target detection time, number of targets detected and rated attentiveness. Both groups, however, showed a similar increase in target detection time after 90 minutes of task performance. The results suggest that 90 minutes may be the maximum time that attention can be uniformly sustained in a laboratory monitoring task of this type.