Situation Awareness in Driving

Situation awareness (SA) is defined as “the perception of the elements of the environment within a volume of space and time, the comprehension of their meaning, and the projection of their status in the near future” (Endsley, 1988). SA has been found to be central for successful performance in driving. As vehicle automation becomes more capable, increasing its levels of reliability and robustness for performing a wider range of the driving tasks, driver’s SA will be affected. With some forms of automation, driver’s SA might become compromised, leading to circumstances where drivers fail in proper monitoring of the vehicle and traffic environment and in providing intervention when needed. This chapter examines what SA means from the standpoint of road transportation, based on a model of SA that describes the cognitive mechanisms involved in driving, as well as external environmental and system factors that impact on SA. It further describes the important influence of new technologies and vehicle automation on SA. Based on this overview, directions for the design of vehicles and training to improve driver SA are recommended.