Abstract
Human errors tend to occur during emergencies in which emotional arousal level is extremely high. Although research on human behaviors in emergencies exists that looks at mass panic and/or provides case studies, few studies focus on individual behavior in emergencies and employ experimental techniques. In this study, participants played the "water-pipe game" under conditions of "time pressure" and "severity" designed to increase arousal. ("Emergency" consists of both these factors together.) They were asked to push the button as early and as precisely as possible when a target appeared at the center of the monitor. Experimental participants' click frequency increased and their thinking time declined under the high-arousal condition. This was not so in the control condition. Furthermore, the miss and false alarm rates were higher in the control condition. In conclusion, when emotionally aroused in an emergency situation, humans tend to act promptly without active thought and to overlook events that are not related to their actions.
