Cognitive Factors

The opening chapter of this book noted that the primary goal of using helmet-mounted displays (HMDs) is to increase individual and unit performance. To meet such a goal, there must be an accurate transfer of information from the HMD to the user; and this transfer must occur at appropriate times. Ideally, an HMD would be designed to accommodate the abilities and limitations of users’ cognitive processes. It is not enough for the information to be displayed (visually, auditorially, or tactually); the information must be perceived, attended, remembered, and organized in a way that guides appropriate decision-making, judgment, and action. Cognitive science emphasizes the scientific study of human cognition through empirical measurements of human behavior. Although philosophers have been interested in human thought for thousands of years, the field of cognitive science is relatively new, barely more than 100 years old. Given that the field is in its infancy, it is not surprising that there are more questions than answers. Indeed, one of the main discoveries of the field is just how difficult human cognition is to explain. Despite tremendous advances and discoveries over the past 100 years, the major problems remain unsolved. Indeed, outside of very constrained situations, it is very difficult to predict the cognitive properties and capabilities of any given individual or group of individuals. To appreciate the complexity of human cognition, consider the task of a Warfighter listening to auditory information with an HMD (this example is modified from a discussion in Willingham (2007), see Chapter 2, The Human-Machine Interface Challenge, for a similar description of processes involved in perception):