Validation of Virtual Reality Cognitive Assessment for Pilots Across the Lifespan

Abstract

This research reports on the acceptance and responses to a Virtual Reality (VR) cognitive health screening tool for younger and older pilots. Currently, there are few cognitive assessments that examine the cognitive health of pilots across the lifespan. The cognitive assessments tools for pilots that do exist index a variety of domain-independent functions which do not translate to real-world risks during flights. Furthermore, domain-independent functions such as processing speed, are negatively affected by age thereby making these tools potentially biased against older pilots. CANFLY, a 3-Dimensional (3D) virtual reality simulator, addresses the need for a domain-specific cognitive assessment tool which assesses cognitive functions that pertain to real-world flight such as situation awareness and prospective memory. While CANFLY addresses the problem of validity and generalization to real-world risk, it is also important to ensure that older pilots do not experience the systematic bias that can occur with the use of domain-independent cognitive assessment tools. Some possible age-related issues that could potentially arise with VR cognitive assessment tools include unexpected negative effects (such as simulator sickness or discomfort), or a general lack of acceptance of 3D flight simulation devices amongst older pilots. To examine age effects in VR flight, forty-seven pilots (four females), between the ages of 17 and 71, flew two sessions, the first in a standard full-scale simulator and the second in a VR flight simulator. The tasks in the VR flight were designed as the cognitive health screening tool and indexed key domain-dependent cognitive factors such as situation awareness and prospective memory. After the two sessions, the pilots were also asked to describe their experience with the 3D VR simulator compared to the standard flight simulator. Thus, the present study examined whether or not simulation environment and pilot age had an effect on flight performance. Interactions between the pilot age and effect of the simulation environment were also investigated. Age was also explored as a factor in the acceptance of the VR flight environment and the presence of cybersickness after the VR flight. The results showed that older pilots performed worse for a number of flight tasks, but that there was no interaction effect between age and flight simulation environment on situation awareness and prospective memory. There was a preference for the VR simulation over the full-scale simulator, and this was seen in both age groups. No effect of age was found for the cybersickness measures, although there was a small trend for pilots of all ages to experience slightly increased symptoms associated with queasiness after the VR flight. Findings from the present research show that older pilots are not likely to experience bias from the VR technology or cybersickness symptoms in a VR cognitive health screening tool. Results support the use of VR as a useful platform for evaluating domain-dependent cognition for pilots across the lifespan.