A psychomotor vigilance task (PVT) is a sustained-

attention Attention is the behavioral and cognitive process of selectively concentrating on a discrete aspect of information, whether considered subjective or objective, while ignoring other perceivable information. William James (1890) wrote that "Att ...

, reaction-timed task that measures the consistency with which subjects respond to a visual stimulus. Research indicates increased

sleep debt Sleep debt or sleep deficit is the cumulative effect of not getting enough sleep. A large sleep debt may lead to mental or physical fatigue, and can adversely affect one's mood, energy and ability to think clearly. There are two kinds of sleep d ...

or sleep deficit correlates with deteriorated

alertness Alertness is the state of active attention by high sensory awareness such as being watchful and prompt to meet danger or emergency, or being quick to perceive and act. It is related for psychology . A lack of alertness is a symptom of a n ...

, slower

problem solving Problem solving is the process of achieving a goal by overcoming obstacles, a frequent part of most activities. Problems in need of solutions range from simple personal tasks (e.g. how to turn on an appliance) to complex issues in business an ...

, declined psychomotor skills, and increased rate of false responses. Use of PVT tests was championed by David F. Dinges and popularized by its ease of scoring, simple metrics, and

convergent validity Convergent validity, for human cognition, especially within sociology, psychology, and other behavioral sciences, refers to the degree to which two measures that theoretically should be related, are in fact related. Convergent validity, along wit ...

. However, it was shown that

motivation Motivation is the reason for which humans and other animals initiate, continue, or terminate a behavior at a given time. Motivational states are commonly understood as forces acting within the agent that create a disposition to engage in goal-dire ...

can counteract the detrimental effects of sleep loss for up to 36 hours. PEBL's Perceptual Vigilance Test (screenshot)

How it works

The PVT is a simple task where the subject presses a button as soon as the light appears. The light will turn on randomly every few seconds for 5–10 minutes. The main measurement of this task is not to assess the reaction time (

mental chronometry Mental chronometry is the scientific study of processing speed or reaction time on cognitive tasks to infer the content, duration, and temporal sequencing of mental operations. Reaction time (RT; sometimes referred to as "response time") is meas ...

), but rather to see how many times the button is not pressed when the light is on . The purpose of the PVT is to measure sustained attention, and give a numerical measure of sleepiness by counting the number of lapses in attention of the tested subject.

Where it has been used

The Psychomotor Vigilance Self Test on the

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest Modular design, modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos ( ...

(Reaction Self Test) provides the crewmembers with feedback on neurobehavioral changes in vigilant attention, state stability, and impulsivity. It aids crewmembers to objectively identify when their performance capability is degraded by various fatigue-related conditions that can occur as a result of ISS operations and time in space (e.g., acute and chronic sleep restriction, slam shifts, extravehicular activity (EVA), and residual sedation from sleep medications). The test is ideal for use in space flight because unlike other

cognitive test Cognitive tests are assessments of the cognitive capabilities of humans and other animals. Tests administered to humans include various forms of IQ tests; those administered to animals include the mirror test (a test of visual self-awareness) and ...

s, it is brief while being free of learning effects and aptitude difference that make interpretation of other measures difficult, as it has been successfully deployed in three NASA missions.

Research

Kaul et al. found that

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...

acutely improves psychomotor vigilance, and may decrease sleep need. Meditation acutely improves psychomotor vigilance, and may decrease sleep need. Prashant Kaul, Jason Passafiume, R C Sargent and Bruce F O'Hara. Behavioral and Brain Functions 2010, 6:47 doi:10.1186/1744-9081-6-47

References

{{reflist Psychology experiments

How it works

Where it has been used

Research

See also

References