{"id":{"repo_id":"qu-belfast","oai_identifier":"oai:pure.qub.ac.uk/portal:studenttheses/8d703674-d624-48c1-be7e-9816aa813bfe"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/qu-belfast/oai:pure.qub.ac.uk/portal:studenttheses/8d703674-d624-48c1-be7e-9816aa813bfe","repository":{"repo_id":"qu-belfast","name":"Queen's University Belfast","base_url":"https://pureadmin.qub.ac.uk/ws/oai"},"display":{"title":"Ageing and perceptual-based decision-making in traffic environments","abstract":"Successful navigation through our environment depends on selecting and controlling the appropriate course of action. According to ecological psychology, decisions on when and how we act is achieved through the detection of information specifying affordances; the fit between an actor’s action possibilities and their environment. As a result, errors in decision-making may derive from an unanticipated actualization of what the environment affords. While recent research has aimed to understand how changes in physical limitations of individuals influence their perception of what the environment affords them, little research has investigated how changes during life span influence sensitivity to specifying information, and how these may impact upon action decisions.<br/><br/>In a series of interlinking studies using virtual traffic environments, different age groups were investigated in their ability to: tune into action-relevant information in the optical array, use such information to guide both the choice of behaviour and the continuous guidance of action, and re-educate attention to specifying or non-specifying action information. Findings support the general assumption that ageing impacts the ability to tune into information which specifies whether a gap affords crossing or not and this extends beyond action selection to influence how an affordance is actualized.<br/><br/>Together, these studies provide evidence of age deterioration in the use of perceptual-based information that guides decisions about when and how to act. This suggests that to help prevent unintended injury, intervention strategies for older adults should focus on re-learning how to tune into and use information that specifies affordances in hazardous environments.","abstract_html":"Successful navigation through our environment depends on selecting and controlling the appropriate course of action. According to ecological psychology, decisions on when and how we act is achieved through the detection of information specifying affordances; the fit between an actor’s action possibilities and their environment. As a result, errors in decision-making may derive from an unanticipated actualization of what the environment affords. While recent research has aimed to understand how changes in physical limitations of individuals influence their perception of what the environment affords them, little research has investigated how changes during life span influence sensitivity to specifying information, and how these may impact upon action decisions.&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt;In a series of interlinking studies using virtual traffic environments, different age groups were investigated in their ability to: tune into action-relevant information in the optical array, use such information to guide both the choice of behaviour and the continuous guidance of action, and re-educate attention to specifying or non-specifying action information. Findings support the general assumption that ageing impacts the ability to tune into information which specifies whether a gap affords crossing or not and this extends beyond action selection to influence how an affordance is actualized.&lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt;Together, these studies provide evidence of age deterioration in the use of perceptual-based information that guides decisions about when and how to act. This suggests that to help prevent unintended injury, intervention strategies for older adults should focus on re-learning how to tune into and use information that specifies affordances in hazardous environments.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Stafford, James"],"institution":"Queen's University Belfast","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy","degree_level":"Doctoral Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["Rodger, Matthew","Doumas, Michail"],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2021,"date_issued":"2021-7","date_published":"2021-7","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:55:38Z","subjects":["Affordances","traffic","decision-making","perceptual","information","Tau","ageing"],"languages":["eng"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["oai:pure.qub.ac.uk/portal:studenttheses/8d703674-d624-48c1-be7e-9816aa813bfe"],"render_values":[{"text":"oai:pure.qub.ac.uk/portal:studenttheses/8d703674-d624-48c1-be7e-9816aa813bfe","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://pure.qub.ac.uk/en/studentTheses/8d703674-d624-48c1-be7e-9816aa813bfe","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Rodger, Matthew","Doumas, Michail"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.sponsor","label":"Sponsor","values":["Northern Ireland Department for the Economy"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Stafford, James"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2021-7"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2021-7"]},{"key":"dc:publisher.department","label":"Dc Publisher Department","values":["School of Psychology"]},{"key":"dc:publisher.institution","label":"Dc Publisher Institution","values":["Queen's University Belfast"]},{"key":"dc:relation.isreferencedby","label":"Dc Relation Isreferencedby","values":["https://pure.qub.ac.uk/en/studentTheses/8d703674-d624-48c1-be7e-9816aa813bfe"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"dc:type.qualificationlevel","label":"Dc Type Qualificationlevel","values":["Doctoral Thesis"]},{"key":"dc:type.qualificationname","label":"Dc Type Qualificationname","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Affordances","traffic","decision-making","perceptual","information","Tau","ageing"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights.embargodate","label":"Dc Rights Embargodate","values":["2021-07-31"]},{"key":"dc:rights.embargoreason","label":"Dc Rights Embargoreason","values":["/dk/atira/pure/core/document/studentthesisembargoreason/publicationissues"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["oai:pure.qub.ac.uk/portal:studenttheses/8d703674-d624-48c1-be7e-9816aa813bfe","https://pure.qub.ac.uk/en/studentTheses/8d703674-d624-48c1-be7e-9816aa813bfe"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://pure.qub.ac.uk/files/222948398/Ageing_and_perceptual_based_decision_making_in_traffic_environments.pdf"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Successful navigation through our environment depends on selecting and controlling the appropriate course of action. According to ecological psychology, decisions on when and how we act is achieved through the detection of information specifying affordances; the fit between an actor’s action possibilities and their environment. As a result, errors in decision-making may derive from an unanticipated actualization of what the environment affords. While recent research has aimed to understand how changes in physical limitations of individuals influence their perception of what the environment affords them, little research has investigated how changes during life span influence sensitivity to specifying information, and how these may impact upon action decisions.<br/><br/>In a series of interlinking studies using virtual traffic environments, different age groups were investigated in their ability to: tune into action-relevant information in the optical array, use such information to guide both the choice of behaviour and the continuous guidance of action, and re-educate attention to specifying or non-specifying action information. Findings support the general assumption that ageing impacts the ability to tune into information which specifies whether a gap affords crossing or not and this extends beyond action selection to influence how an affordance is actualized.<br/><br/>Together, these studies provide evidence of age deterioration in the use of perceptual-based information that guides decisions about when and how to act. This suggests that to help prevent unintended injury, intervention strategies for older adults should focus on re-learning how to tune into and use information that specifies affordances in hazardous environments."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Ageing and perceptual-based decision-making in traffic environments"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["Rodger, Matthew","Doumas, Michail"],"dc:contributor.sponsor":["Northern Ireland Department for the Economy"],"dc:creator":["Stafford, James"],"dc:date":["2021-7"],"dc:date.issued":["2021-7"],"dc:description.abstract":["Successful navigation through our environment depends on selecting and controlling the appropriate course of action. According to ecological psychology, decisions on when and how we act is achieved through the detection of information specifying affordances; the fit between an actor’s action possibilities and their environment. 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