FOREWORD The Infantry Forces Research Unit of the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences conducts research to investigate the challenges presented by the 21st Century battlefield. Force modernization efforts must be guided by research to identify those systems and procedures that can produce the greatest benefits for U.S. forces now and in the future. This study investigated the situation awareness (SA) of platoon leaders in simulated MOUT (Military Operations on Urbanized Terrain) missions. Since information availability and usage are integral to the development of situational dominance for any military force, identification of the multidimensional elements that comprise a soldier’s SA is a critical first step in developing technologies and training methods to improve SA. A preliminary analysis of platoon leaders’ SA requirements formed the basis for developing measures to quantify SA in Infantry exercises. Three instruments were developed, providing both objective and subjective SA measures which were then implemented during simulated MOUT missions. The investigation established that SA could be quantified and measured in a light Infantry MOUT environment, despite the complexities of the information demands. The results demonstrated the utility of virtual exercises in the Squad Synthetic Environment to support both research and training. Not only were SA differences identified between experience levels, but also between scenarios and the point in the simulation at which they were queried, providing an initial demonstration of the sensitivity of the measures. Qualitative and quantitative SA differences between more experienced and less experienced officers suggest it may be possible to train less experienced officers to attend to the available information differently, thus enhancing both SA and decision-making while improving the cost-effectiveness of leader training.
ZITA M. SIMUTIS Technical Director
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