@article{ref1,
title="The Role of Working Memory in Supporting Drivers’ Situation Awareness for Surrounding Traffic",
journal="Human factors",
year="2010",
author="Johannsdottir, Kamilla R. and Herdman, Chris M.",
volume="52",
number="6",
pages="663-673",
abstract="Objective: To link working memory to driver situational awareness (SA) for surrounding traffic. Background: Operating a motor vehicle is a complex activity that requires drivers to maintain a high level of SA. Working memory has been conceptually linked to SA; however, the roles of working memory subsystems in supporting driver SA is unclear. Method: Participants drove a simulated vehicle and monitored surrounding traffic while concurrently performing either visuospatial- or phonological-load tasks. Drivers’ SA was indexed as the ability to recall the positions of the surrounding traffic relative to their own vehicle at the end of each trial. Results: In Experiment 1, a visuospatial task interfered with drivers’ ability to recall the positions of traffic located in front of their vehicle. In contrast, a phonological task interfered with drivers’ ability to recall the positions of traffic located behind their vehicle. Experiment 2 confirmed and extended the findings of Experiment 1 with the use of different visuospatial- and phonological-load tasks. Conclusion: Visuospatial and phonological codes play a role in supporting driver SA for traffic located in the forward view and the rear view, respectively. Application: Drivers’ SA for surrounding vehicles is disrupted by concurrent performance on secondary tasks. The development and implementation of new in-cabin communication, navigation, and informational technologies needs to be done with the knowledge that components of drivers’ working memory capacity may be exceeded, thereby compromising driving safety.<p />",
language="",
issn="0018-7208",
doi="10.1177/0018720810385427",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0018720810385427"
}