Capturing cognitive load management during authentic virtual reality flight training with behavioural and physiological indicators

Background Cognitive load (CL) management is essential in safety-critical fields so that professionals can monitor and control their cognitive resources efficiently to perform and solve scenarios in a timely and safe manner, even in complex and unexpected circumstances. Thus, cognitive load theory (CLT) can be used to design virtual reality (VR) training programmes for professional learning in these fields. Objectives We studied CL management performance through behavioural indicators in authentic VR flight training and explored if and to what extent physiological data was associated with CL management performance. Methods The expert (n = 8) and novice pilots (n = 6) performed three approac…