Fatigue and Short Memory in Pilots - Term Paper Example

Fatigue and short term memory in pilots Name Course Instructor Date Fatigue and short term memory in pilots Introduction The connectivity between the psychological and physiological body processes has been used to explain behavior. In such discussions, physiological processes are usually held as the source to the psychological states. In some cases, certain psychological states are identified to result into the physiological processes in the body. The interactions between the two theoretical dimensions have been an important especially for those seeking to explain some positive or negative attributes as they are elicited in the behaviors of people. In this discussion, this linkage is traced. A number of multi-level connections between physiological and psychological factors are elucidated. As an example, in the paper, emotions are discussed with their connectivity to the dilation of the eyes and fatigue. Such a connection is also discussed in the link existing between physical fatigue, depression and memory. Even the general theme addressed which is the connectivity between fatigue and memory for the category of pilots applies to the relationship between the physiological and the psychological factors. The eyes’ pupils have been connected with fatigue and memory processes. Here, it is identified that the operation of the pupils, especially from the process of dilation, causes a number of biological consequences with such consequences also influencing the psychological state of the individual. These psychological consequences are identified to result into a mental state where memory is impacted. Many biological states have been connected with constant dilation of the eye (Goldwater, 1972). They include an increased level in one’s overall excitement, to a feeling of discomfort. It also relates to displeasure and pleasure as feelings which may be outcomes of dilation. A person, whose eyes are constantly dilated, is also identified by Goldwater (1972) to tend to experience other conditions which qualify him or her as being under an emotional tension state. These emotional states are identified by Goldwater (1972) to put pressure on the processes of the body, in the end causing fatigue. This is because while under emotional upheaval, the person’s biological processes tend to rise, thereby having the energy resources consumed faster. The overall meaning of this is that heightened dilation alone causes emotional stress with such stress casing fatigue (Goldwater, 1972). Research continues to show that dilation is high in moments of concentration. These dilations are also identified to be elicited by things such as color changing (Goldwater, 1972). When there is constant shift of colors, the dilation is said to be heightened. The connectivity of dilation with emotions of excitement, pain, threat, pleasure as well as displeasure has also been connected with the attention state. It is said that as these emotions causing fatigue become heightened, so does the attention fall below the average level (Goldwater, 1972). The meaning of this is that the person who is dilating tends to have a suspended short-term memory. The person finds it impossible attend to different senses except the sense which relates to the dilation thus emotion (excitement, pleasure, pain, displeasure and such). This is because the mind tends to give-up on the many appealing sensations because they fatigue the system by causing many emotional states which tend to confuse and cause displeasure. In such a state, the person thus blocks the sensation from reaching the system in order to concentrate on one emotion. This blocking of other senses makes the person less aware of the environment. This means what is reaching the brain from the immediate environment is not contained or is repelled for focus on the emotion eliciting or being elicited by the dilation. This, according to Goldwater (1972) is a state of reduced short-term memory because the person is no longer recording and remembering the senses reaching his mental capacity. The above analysis is relevant to the pilots. Pilots are in a condition where the dilation of their eyes is necessary to keep them in focus. They have to keep their eyes wide open because any loss of sight may cause serious mistakes and even fatal accidents. Beside the need for concentration, their area of operation is also full of colors. Color changes are one thing which defines the cockpit where they operate. This identifies them as having these colors and their changes as also the source for dilations. As Goldwater (1972) holds, considering all these dimensions, it is easy to understand why a pilot will simply be fatigued by the tasks he is doing even when there are no movements being made or pressures being applied constantly. In the view of Goldwater (1972), the fact that the pilot has to keep his eyes wide open means various emotions such as excitement will emerge which will drain the person and fatigue him. Goldwater (1972) holds that it is thus normal to expect a pilot to lose concentration on the presence of others around him or things in the area of his work. As Goldwater (1972) holds, it is because he has suspended other sensation because of the emotions they elicit which may block his attention on the task of steering (Goldwater, 1972). A person lacking sleep has been connected with his getting fatigued as well as decreased short-term memory. As Lim and Dingers (2010) hold, scientific research has effectively connected this adequacy in sleep with among others, reductions in the capacities of the working memory. As Lim and Dingers (2010) hold, these researches continue to show that this comes about because when there is inadequate sleep, the degree of processing on a number of tasks intended to keep this short-term memory constantly updated, is lost. The processing of information thus takes longer than would be the case needed to have an active working (short term) memory (Lim & Dingers, 2010). Besides the idea of the speed of processing, the lack of sleep has also been connected with hampering of the executive function called selective attention. This is the process where the mind attends to one task as important while keeping the others under suspension for the basic intension of ensuring emphasis on this. Lim and Dingers (2010) identify this line of causation and effect. As Lim and Dingers (2010) holds, the two elements of short-term memory of selective attention and attention are expected to be very low when sleep has been little because in such a state, the mind and indeed the whole body, is fatigued and works at a lower pace including in storage of information (Lim & Dingers, 2010). Sleep in one factor that the pilots are identified to lack. This is because it is demanded on them to be active throughout the trips they are making. The overall impact of this is that they get fatigued. This in the end results in the slowness of processes associated with short-term memory such as the idea of having selective attention as well as the idea of the speed in which this working memory is being fed (Lim & Dingers, 2010). Inhibition has been identified as central in the behavior process. As Fishbach, Friedman and Kruglanski (2003) hold, individuals, in their performance of duties, will tend to be constantly engaged in a number of goals, sometimes in the subconscious mind. These other goals are there even when there is active activity seeking the fulfillment of one goal. As an example, a person who is riding a bicycle may at the same time be thinking of how he will study. As Fishbach, Friedman and Kruglanski (2003) hold, two behavior conditions are dangerous. One is when one thinks of many other things (sub-goals) when the current activity (goal) is on-going. As Fishbach, Friedman and Kruglanski (2003) identify, such makes one to get fatigued because of the demand on the mind to concentrate on the tasks at hand as well as meet the thought lines of the other things (goals). The second danger is when the activity being done demands so much time that there is no any other thing which can be thought of. This, according to Fishbach, Friedman and Kruglanski (2003) makes one to lose all the senses of the other things which he is intending to do in the next few munities or so. As Fishbach, Friedman and Kruglanski (2003) hold, it is because when the mind highly concentrates on the single task, it gets fatigued by this such that there is no motivation to keep holding the others sensations in the short-term memory. The above two scenarios are relevant for the case of pilots. First is because pilots, while doing their duty, will also be thinking about other things in their lives. They may be thinking about their families and such. In today’s pressures, these other thoughts besides the activity of piloting may be many. This means the thought process of the pilot is easy to get fatigued from the many thoughts invading it. Such is bound to make many pilots vulnerable to a state of lacking concentration or attention to a particular thing thus having descried short-term memory. The second dimension is also applicable to the case of the pilot. The work of pilots demands on them high concentration. This means they have toe elbow everything else and concentrating on the task of steering the aircraft. Such elimination of all other thoughts in the end results into a state where the steering task overburdens the mind and makes it to get fatigued. This in the end results into loses of concentration on everything including the task at hand because short-term memory is low (Fishbach, Friedman & Kruglanski, 2003). The above discussion has focused on mental fatigue. There are a number of other resources which concentrate on physical fatigue. In White et al. (2006) it is held that physical fatigue brings about many factors which in the end hamper the brain’s functionality. One factor coming from such fatigue is the idea of depression. As White et al. (2006) identifies, people who are identified to be fatigued are usually depressed individuals. As White et al. (2006) further identifies, person who are depressed will tend to be less active in their mental operations. They ted to react slowly because their short-term memory is responding slowly. The meaning of this is that physical fatigue, as the mental one, also hampers the memory (White et al., 2006). The idea of physical fatigue is identified as relevant for the category of pilots (White et al., 2006). Pilots generally do tasks without taking a good break. Their duty consumes their physical energy. To add to this, is the fact that they are engaged on their jobs for a long time. The meaning of this is that pilots are a physically depleted thus fatigued lot. The meaning of this is also that they are depressed individuals. This makes them good candidates for short-memory inhibition (White et al., 2006). Baumeister et al. (1998) describe a process of seeking to use a state of fatigue to reach benefits of performance of tasks. As Baumeister et al. (1998) hold, when people are physically fatigued, they will tend to apply to their asset of self control to be able to reach the goals they would have reached with the physical strength. The view of Baumeister et al. (1998) is that this is ego operating instead of other motivations. This ego operation, as Baumeister et al. (1998) identify, has however been found to reach little benefits if any. This, according to Baumeister et al. (1998) is because anyone who is fatigued, though having the necessary attitude thus ego drive will still find it difficult to concentrate on the tasks. As Baumeister et al. (1998) conclude, the meaning of this is that fatigue is a necessary cause to lose of concentration on tasks at hand. it is a cause to a loss of short term memory needed to concentrate on things even in the state that there is the will. This case applies to pilots. The pilots today usually operate in a situation where the pressures of work as well as the work conditions have completely depleted them. They are thus only depending on the attitude they have on the job. But this attitude seems to fail them. They find that even with the ego or attitude on implementation, they cannot perform the tasks from short term-memory as they would desire. Conclusion The above discussion proves a number of hypotheses. One of such is the premise that fatigue builds certain physiological processes which cause memory inhibition. As advanced in the discussion, whenever fatigue is the case, the person tends to be in a state of depression. This is identified in the paper to be so because the fatigue reduces the speed of the engagement in the processes. As the discussion connects, such a state of depression where actions are occurring slowly means that the process of seeking attention to senses is very slowly. This, according to the discussion means short-term memory which is not working at its potential. The discussion also applies and connects this relationship to the reality of the work life of pilots. As the discussion holds, pilots, because of the demands on them which are never ending, are bound to feel fatigued. This is identified to be a potential source for depression for this category with the eventual impact being their memory being hampered. The psychological process of dilation of eyes has also been connected to a number of psychological states. As the discussion holds, when the eyes dilate, emotions are steered up. These emotions are identified as excitement, pleasure among others. In the view of the discussion, these emotions usually exhaust the person because they drain the energy. The view of the discussion is that such will cause fatigue. Here, it is identified that the fatigue condition, as in the first case causes reductions in short term memory capacity. Using the same lines of thought, sleep is also connected to the idea of fatigue and short term memory. In summary, pilots and their experience of fatigue live to the premise of the connectivity between physiological and psychological processes. Fatigue is identified as a physiological process. In the discussion, such is seen from the way it is connected with the working of the body (of the pilot). Memory is the psychological dimension in the debate. This is proved from the way it is connected to things such as emotions. The idea of memory is identified as being affected by the idea of fatigue. Such is true to the premise that physiological processes affect psychological states. References. Baumeister, R. et al. (1998). Ego depletion: Is the active self a limited resource? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74 (5), 1252-1265 Fishbach, A., Friedman, R., & Kruglanski, A. (2003). Leading us not unto temptation: momentary allurement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84 (2), 296-309. Goldwater, B. (1972). Psychological significance of papillary movements. Psychological Bulletin, 77 (5), 340-355 Lim, J., & Dingers, D. (2010). A meta-analysis of the impact of short-term sleep deprivation on cognitive variables. Psychological Bulletin, 136(3), 375-389. White, K. et al. (2006). Causal attributions, perceived control, and psychological adjustment: A study of chronic fatigue syndrome. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 36 (1), 75-99. Read More