Human Factors Engineering Flashcards
7 cards from real CEA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Human Factors Engineering flashcards as text
Which signal detection theory measure reflects a person's ability to discriminate a signal from noise, independent of response bias?
Answer: d-prime (d')
d-prime (d') is the sensitivity index in signal detection theory that measures discriminability independent of the observer's decision criterion.
The Fitts' Law formula MT = a + b log2(2A/W) predicts movement time based on which two variables?
Answer: Amplitude and target width
Fitts' Law predicts movement time using amplitude (distance to target) and target width, where a wider target or shorter distance reduces movement time.
Which memory system has the largest capacity and longest duration but requires encoding for information to be retained?
Answer: Long-term memory
Long-term memory has virtually unlimited capacity and indefinite duration, but information must be encoded through rehearsal or meaningful association.
In human factors, 'situation awareness' (SA) is best defined as:
Answer: Perception, comprehension, and projection of environmental elements
Mica Endsley's model defines SA as three levels: perception of elements, comprehension of their meaning, and projection of future status.
The 'population stereotype' concept in human factors refers to:
Answer: The expected direction of control movement that most people intuitively associate with a display change
Population stereotypes describe the control-display movement relationships that a majority of users expect, such as turning a knob clockwise to increase a value.
Which cognitive bias causes operators to search for information that confirms their initial hypothesis while ignoring contradictory evidence?
Answer: Confirmation bias
Confirmation bias leads operators to selectively attend to data supporting their initial diagnosis, potentially delaying recognition of the true problem.
In the context of mental workload assessment, the NASA-TLX tool measures workload across how many subscales?
Answer: 6
The NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) uses six subscales: Mental Demand, Physical Demand, Temporal Demand, Performance, Effort, and Frustration.