Symposium on Neuroergonomics: Using neuroscientific methods to understand the brain at work

Abstract

Modern advances in neuroscientific methods, which are increasingly portable and easy-to-use (e.g., EEG, fNIRS), allow us to understand how the brain allows us to accomplish diverse activities in our real-world environment - from walking to piloting an aircraft to navigating a virtual computing desktop. To add, technology for tracking behavior and monitoring environment variables in real-time grants us insight into how our natural responses might relate to perceived stimuli. Neuroergonomics refer to how neuroscientific methods can be employed to understand (and facilitate) the psychological mechanisms that underlie our ability to function at the workplace. As a complement to user performance and subjective attitudes, neuroscientific methods allow us to consider factors that underlie work such as: task engagement, cognitive workload, frustration, perceived valence, and others. The far-reaching objective is to rely on valid measurements of mental states to create workplaces that are responsive to our fickle aptitude for work. This is increasingly important as the nature of our workplaces is rapidly redefined by cognitive rather than physical work. Factory workers have to collaborate with robots, pilots largely supervise automated flight, and semi-automated vehicles require their users to effectively switch between leisure activities and driving. In this symposium, we will address and discuss: (1) the neural mechanisms that allow us to interact with closed-loop machine systems (2) the relationships between measurable changes in (neuro-)physiology and mental states of cognition and affect. (3) the challenges that underlie the effective implementation of neuroscientific methods in real workplaces (4) the potential benefits of doing so with regards to aspects of safety, comfort, and technological acceptance. To stimulate this, researchers with different application foci will present their recent research, experience, and perspectives on the topic of neuroergonomics. We begin the symposium with Klaus Gramann (TU Berlin) who will show how Mobile Brain/Body Imaging provides the tools to study relationships between the brain, cognition, and motor behavior. Lewis Chuang (MPI for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen) will explain how EEG/ERP responses to voluntary and involuntary distractions can help us evaluate task engagement during closed-loop control. Jochem Rieger (University of Oldenburg) will explain how finer discriminations of the different states of mental workload can be achieved with empirical neuroscience. Following this, Julian Reiser and colleagues (Leibniz-Institut für Arbeitsforschung, Dortmund) employ mobile EEG techniques to illustrate how mental states (i.e., attention) can vary across different age demographics. Klas Ihme and colleagues (German Aerospace Center, Braunschweig) will present their results on in-vehicle frustration recognition and its potential usage for (automated) driving. Finally, Mathias Vukelic (Fraunhofer IAO, Stuttgart) will end the symposium by addressing the development of emotion-sensitive neuro-adaptive technology. We will conclude with a short discussion panel on the future implications, possibilities, and constraints of using neuroergonomic methods in basic and applied research.