Document

thumbnail of Validating IMPACT – A new cognitive test battery for defence

Author
Erinn Sturgess, Victoria Steane & Mark Chattington
Abstract
This paper introduces the Interactive Measures of Performance and Assessment of Cognitive Tasks (IMPACT) tool, a new cognitive test battery for defence human sciences practitioners. The paper describes a comprehensive research study adopting a multi-method approach using a range of subjective and objective measures of human performance and cognitive states (including functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy; electrodermal activity; heart rate variability; gaze metrics; subjective workload; task performance and subjective situational awareness) to validate the assumptions made about IMPACT’s ability to elicit a number of cognitive properties. A brief overview of the findings is presented demonstrating the potential of the tool to elicit different behavioural outcomes based on task load manipulation – an important first step in understanding the construct validity of the IMPACT tool for human sciences practitioners moving forward.