Situational awareness/ attention to detail

[P-11 shooter]

Very short video. Really cool.
http://t.co/oqpbESH




Someone just sent me this video, and while it appears to not have anything to do with carrying a gun, it's actually quite telling how easy it is to get focused on one particular thing and block out everything else in the process. Misdirection is a common tactic of criminals. Don't get so focused on one thing that you forget to look around. Criminals often work in pairs and small groupsand misdirection is a common tactic.

[ScarMack]

that was cool. i had the number of passes right, but failed the other test.

[GreenBlood10]

hahaha That was great! Thanks for posting. I got the count right, but almost lost it laughing when I saw the moon walking creature!

GB

[Helter]

I think these guys did the experiment first...
http://www.theinvisiblegorilla.com/g...xperiment.html
They have a few others that highlight similar cognitive oddities, such as how many people notice if the person that they're talking to changes places with a shill mid conversation.

[PennsyPlinker]

In a firearms related decision making class we saw the video with the gorilla - same thing. I was the only one who saw the gorilla, although I confessed I lost count when he entered the picture.

[Robert Kayland]

Well, it makes for a fun cocktail party game... but in the grand scheme of things, with that many moving bodies and activity going on, and being told from the start to concentrate on the number of passes, well...

I think getting the number of passes correct is more important in this context, in that it shows you can follow directions AND have pretty good powers of concentration and eyesight... said "attention to detail", so-loved by employers and customers.

Then again, I've always been a "concentrate on the task at hand" kind of guy.

Situational awareness is a bit different, in that the concept is that you're in a "general awareness" type of scenario, and not specifically being told to concentrate on a given image or film clip.

For example, had we been walking down the street and ventured near these two groups of players, nobody would be counting passes... we'd be scanning the entire area and making sure nobody suddenly edged too close to our personal comfort zone.

Now, if the instructions from the get-go were "Watch for anything unusual", then we'd all see the bear...

I think the more interesting test would be if the instructions at the start were "Count the number of passes, BUT watch for anything else that you would consider unusual."

[Helter]

Well, it makes for a fun cocktail party game... but in the grand scheme of things, with that many moving bodies and activity going on, and being told from the start to concentrate on the number of passes, well...

I think getting the number of passes correct is more important in this context, in that it shows you can follow directions AND have pretty good powers of concentration and eyesight... said "attention to detail", so-loved by employers and customers.

Then again, I've always been a "concentrate on the task at hand" kind of guy.

Situational awareness is a bit different, in that the concept is that you're in a "general awareness" type of scenario, and not specifically being told to concentrate on a given image or film clip.

For example, had we been walking down the street and ventured near these two groups of players, nobody would be counting passes... we'd be scanning the entire area and making sure nobody suddenly edged too close to our personal comfort zone.

Now, if the instructions from the get-go were "Watch for anything unusual", then we'd all see the bear...

I think the more interesting test would be if the instructions at the start were "Count the number of passes, BUT watch for anything else that you would consider unusual."

I suppose situations might vary depending on the individual, but personally I spend a very high percentage of my day concentrating on a particular given task, not just wandering around with nothing to do. Maintaining situational awareness during those times is just as important, if not more so, than when I don't have something to focus on.
I agree that this doesn't really test "situational awareness", but it does show an important aspect of perception, and how we voluntarily exclude things from our perception that do not pertain to what we are engaged with.

[Gun]

I didn't get anything correct!

I'm not going outside, ever again!

[Robert Kayland]

I didn't get anything correct!

I'm not going outside, ever again!

I'd stay inside too... but I heard from the MSM that Wal-mart was selling 9mm for 9 cents a round.

[Gun]

I'd stay inside too... but I heard from the MSM that Wal-mart was selling 9mm for 9 cents a round.

That deal might be worth the risk!