Citation

Rittger L, Reinmueller K, Kiesel A. Transp. Res. F Traffic Psychol. Behav. 2017; 51: 14-23.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.trf.2017.08.009

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The MARS (Masking Action Relevant Stimuli) method assesses information demand for dynamic stimuli while driving. An action relevant stimulus is masked and the driver presses a button to unmask the stimulus for a limited period. We interpreted button presses as information demand. Following our previous research (Rittger, Kiesel, Schmidt, & Maag, 2014), the current study further evaluates the method. We applied the MARS method to a dynamic in-vehicle display containing recommendations from a traffic light assistant. In a driving simulator, drivers approached intersections with different traffic light phasing. The display either presented simple or complex information. In half of the drives, the participants used the MARS method. The study had a full within subjects design and fixations were recorded in all conditions. The results showed that the information demand varied according to the information in the display and the traffic light phase. A comparison of button presses with fixations showed that one unmasking interval came along with one fixation on the display. Asa conclusion, the MARS method can distinguish between conditions with high and low information demand for the display. Button presses relate to fixations on the display. Hence, the MARS method is a promising tool to assess the information demand in dynamic environments and can be applied asan extension or alternative for eye tracking.

Language: en

Keywords

Information processing; Decision making; Driver behavior; Human-machine-interface