INDEXING BEHAVIORAL DECREMENTS BY COMPUTERIZED ASSESSMENT OF STANCE

INDIVIDUALS IN MANY OCCUPATIONS AND ENVIRONMENTAL SITUATIONS CAN BE SUBJECTED TO CONDITIONS THAT MAY HAVE ADVERSE EFFECTS ON SUBJECTIVE WELL-BEING, PRODUCTIVITY, AND PERFORMANCE. THESE CONDITIONS INCLUDE TRADITIONAL CONDITIONS SUCH AS JOB STRESS, THERMAL STRESS, DRUGS, AND SLEEP LOSS, AS WELL AS IN THE MORE MODERN SYSTEMS SUCH AS SIMULATORS AND VIRTUAL REALITY SYSTEMS. RESEARCHERS ARE PROVIDING A PERFORMATORY INDICATOR OF STABLE BASELINE BEHAVIORS RELATED TO THE OVERALL STATUS AND FUNCTIONAL INTEGRITY OF THE HUMAN CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM. SUCH AN INDEX HAS RELEVANCE FOR THE SAFE AND SUCCESSFUL EXECUTION OF REGULARLY CONTROLLED ACTIVITIES IN THE WORKPLACE AND ALSO ACHIEVES LABORATORY ACCURACY. THE INTEGRATED BEHAVIOR OF THE VISUAL SYSTEM TO IMAGE AN OBJECT OF INTEREST ON THE FOVEA IS A COORDINATED BEHAVIOR IN HUMANS THAT CAN BE DISRUPTED BY MANY THINGS. MONITORING THIS ACTIVITY (MEASURING THE DEVIATION OF THE EYE/HEAD FROM THE DESIRED POSITION) WOULD BE A GLOBAL AND SENSITIVE INDEX OF THE FUNCTIONAL STATUS OF THE HUMAN'S ABILITY TO PERFORM ERROR-FREE WORK. INVESTIGATORS ARE VALIDATING AND PRODUCING A HIGHLY PORTABLE DEVICE FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF A HUMAN'S CONTROL OF STANCE.