Env=> ergonomics

Question 1

Key Research=> Drews + Doig

Evaluation of configured vital signs display for intensive care unit nurses

Answer 1

Background=>

• Intensive care unit= specialised hospital env for critically ill patients
• Need to be monitored carefully=> heart rate, bloody pressure, oxygen saturation
• Traditional monitoring displays= numerical form

Aim=> develop + evaluate a configural vital signs display that would help nurses in rapid detection + identification of physiological deterioration in a patient by shows vital signs data graphically

Sample=> 42 nurses of ICU + split into 2 groups

• Group 1= monitored patients using new CVS
• Group 2= control group= monied using old display

Method=> 4 different patient scenarios= not real patients- just displays on screen

1. Early septs
2. Septic shock
3. Pulmonary embolus
4. Stable scenario
   - 5 mins with each patient
   - Verbally evaluate data + recommend interventions

Measured on=>

• How accurate data was
• Response time
• After completing 4 scenarios=> completed self report questionnaire about the level of mental demand associated with each task

Results=>

• 48% quicker identification with CVS compared to traditional display (SEPTIC SHOCK)
• Accuracy improved by 1/3 using new display
• Reported significantly lower mental demand for CVS

Question 2

Brown + Poulton=> secondary task performance

Answer 2

Participants asked to drive either=>
-Residential area (few important inputs)
-Car park in crowed shopping centre (large number of important inputs)
While driving=> played a tape of list of number + had to identify what number changed in sequence
-Participants made more errors in car park than residential area
-Cognitive overload theory=> participants needed to give more attention to primary task (driving) in this env= less mental capacity for less important number tasks

Question 3

Miller=> STM + chunking

Answer 3

Suggested limits to peoples STM

• The magical number 7, plus or minus two=> most adults can store between 5 and 9 items in their short-term memory
• BUT if you chunk info together into units that mean something to us=> then 7 chunks of remembered material can be increased (can hold more info in STM)

Question 4

The Hawthorne studies

Answer 4

Investigating light levels on productivity in an electric company

1. Experimenter group=> bright/dim lights
2. Control=> lighting was the same

• Results from dim/bright/constant lighting all increased
• Hawthorne effect occurred=> workers improved productivity because they were being observed
• All groups= 30% increase of productivity

Question 5

Stone=> colour

Answer 5

Exam how a person’s ability to study is affected by setting + colour of room

• Students took part in 1 of 12 conditions (combos of setting, colour etc)
• Either did a maths test of reading comprehension test
• Then completed questionnaire that measured mood, satisfaction + motivation

+ Most positive mood in blue open plan room=> less positive mood in red open plan room
+ Most satirised with performance in white private room + blue open plan room