The impact of sudden events and spatial configuration on the benefits of prior information to situation awareness and performance

Abstract

Having task-relevant information prior to performing the task can improve performance and situation awareness. This study examined the impact of spatial complexity (apartment vs. office buildings) and the presence of sudden events on the benefits of having information prior to fighting fire in a burning building. Performance of an urban firefighting team (finding victims) and situation awareness (SA) were measured in a lab simulation study. Findings show that having complete prior information did improve SA, performance was better in the office building, and performance deteriorated after a sudden event. However, an in-depth examination of the findings suggests that characteristics of the spatial configuration and the presence of sudden events influence the benefits of having prior information. Copyright 2013 by Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, Inc.