SAFETYLIT WEEKLY UPDATE

We compile citations and summaries of about 400 new articles every week.
RSS Feed

HELP: Tutorials | FAQ
CONTACT US: Contact info

Search Results

Journal Article

Citation

Tagliabue M, Da Pos O, Spoto A, Vidotto G. Accid. Anal. Prev. 2013; 57: 10-16.

Affiliation

Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Italy. Electronic address: mariaelena.tagliabue@unipd.it.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.aap.2013.03.034

PMID

23631934

Abstract

Riding a moped, like many other everyday activities, is a complex behavior in which attention plays a crucial role. This study aims to investigate the role of attention in enhancing the skills required to ride a moped simulator. Two experiments were conducted with 207 and 60 students (14-15 years old), respectively, using a moped simulator to ride on 12 different tracks. The assignment was to ride safely and avoid hazards. In experiment 1, we divided the hazard scenes of the tracks on the basis of the fact that a shift in attention was required to escape the danger. We showed that during the riding training, when no attentional shift was required, the ability to avoid hazards was constantly higher. In experiment 2, participants were asked to cope with the same basic experimental setting but with an additional attentive task. The results showed that they performed in such a way that not only did the attentive task not impair their performance, but it also produced an improvement in the ability to shift attentional focus, preserving performance efficiency. On the basis of these data, it can be claimed that, primarily, attentional shift plays a prominent role in accounting for accident circumstances. Secondarily, it can be claimed that attentional training contributes to improved processing efficiency so as to prevent mishaps.


Language: en

NEW SEARCH


All SafetyLit records are available for automatic download to Zotero & Mendeley
Print