situation awareness

conscious knowledge of the immediate environment and the events that are occurring in it. Situation awareness involves perception of the elements in the environment, comprehension of what they mean and how they relate to one another, and projection of their future states. In ergonomics, for example, it refers to the operator’s awareness of the current status and the anticipated future status of a system. Situation awareness is influenced by a number of factors, including stress; it may be impaired by cognitive tunneling or social tunneling. Compare ambient awareness; vigilance.

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Psychology term of the day

January 30th 2025

Katz Index of Activities of Daily Living

an observer-based measure of the functional status of older adults and individuals with chronic disorders. An individual is rated on the degree of assistance required to perform six basic functions: bathing, dressing, feeding, toileting, transferring, and continence. Baseline measurements provide useful feedback when compared to periodic or subsequent measurements. Also called Katz Index of Independence in Activities of Daily Living. [originally developed in 1963 by Sidney Katz (d. 2012), U.S. physician and geriatrician]