FEAST Vigilance and Conflict Recognition 3

Question 1

The signal detection theory concept of 'criterion' in ATC vigilance refers to:

Accepted Answer

The threshold of evidence a controller requires before deciding a situation requires action

Answer

The decision criterion is the internal threshold determining whether a given stimulus is 'enough' to warrant a response — a key SDT concept in vigilance research.

Question 2

A false alarm in ATC vigilance context means:

Accepted Answer

A controller issues a conflict resolution instruction when no actual conflict exists

Answer

A false alarm is a positive response (issuing an instruction) when no actual conflict exists — the controller perceived a conflict that was not real.

Question 3

Research shows that STCA (Short-Term Conflict Alert) systems that generate many false alarms tend to produce an effect called 'alarm fatigue'. This means controllers will:

Accepted Answer

Begin to treat STCA alerts with less urgency, increasing the risk of missing genuine conflicts

Answer

Alarm fatigue (also called alert fatigue) occurs when frequent false alarms cause operators to habituate to alerts, reducing their urgency response even to genuine warnings.

Question 4

A 'near-miss incident' in ATC is defined as:

Accepted Answer

An airborne encounter where separation is reduced below prescribed minima but no collision occurs

Answer

A near-miss (or airprox) is an airborne event where separation falls below prescribed minima, constituting a separation infringement even if no collision results.

Question 5

A controller's vigilance performance data shows: in the first 10 minutes of monitoring, hit rate = 98%, false alarm rate = 2%. In the second 10 minutes, hit rate = 85%, false alarm rate = 8%. What does this pattern indicate?

Accepted Answer

Vigilance decrement with a liberal criterion shift — the controller is detecting more uncertain signals as alertness falls

Answer

Declining hit rate AND increasing false alarm rate together indicate a criterion shift — the controller is using weaker evidence to trigger responses as attention degrades, producing more misses AND more false alarms.

FEAST - Fighter Employment Aptitude Screening Test Practice Test

FEAST - Fighter Employment Aptitude Screening Test Practice Test

FEAST Vigilance and Conflict Recognition 3