The Impact of Thrill on Situation Awareness in a Theme Park

Situation Awareness (SA) and Performance in Aviation is a graduate course offered at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Daytona Beach, FL campus. A research project that measures SA is a main assignment for this course. Universal Studios Orlando, a dynamic and high-stimulus environment, was chosen for the field study. The theme park provided an engaging setting of how individuals perceive, process, and respond to information after experiencing thrill rides. Twelve graduate students enrolled in the course conducted the study and recruited 47 park patrons immediately after exiting three different thrill rides. Each participant answered the same 14 questions that measured elements of SA, such as awareness of surroundings and park-related details. Variations in ride duration estimations and recall were found. Perceived ride intensity was correlated with response times. However, the study’s most valuable outcome may have been the learning opportunity it provided the students with collecting and analyzing real-world SA data.