Working Memory
Road Scene Awareness Task
Also called: situation awareness probes, freeze-probe task, situation awareness task
Measure memory for changing road scenes with questions about location, movement and what happens next.
6-9 minTimed: desktop or laptop with a mouse or trackpad
Free to start: 10 free participants per account, then $0.99 per participant for academic research, or any yearly plan. Try it here first, with no account.
- Papers, 2021 to 2025
- 73
- Evidence grade
- C
- Registered clinical studies
- 3
What it measures
Measures memory for a changing road scene. The scene disappears without warning, then participants answer where road users were, how they were moving and where they would be next. Scores accuracy for each type of question.
Constructs
- Visual and spatial working memory
- Situation awareness
- Motion prediction
Research uses
- Dynamic scene memory research
- Attention and workload studies
- Within-study group comparison
How the paradigm works
The Road Scene Awareness Task measures what people retain about a changing road scene. Participants watch a pedestrian, a car and a cyclist, then the scene disappears without warning. Three questions ask where one road user was, which way another was moving and where the third would be one second later if the movement continued. This uses the freeze-and-query method described by Endsley (1995), with original short road scenes and questions.
More about the paradigm
The standard session has 2 practice scenes with feedback, followed by 12 scenes, each lasting 6 to 11 seconds before the display blanks. Each freeze has one location, one movement and one prediction question. The three targets, question order and answer positions are shuffled from the session seed. Each question has three choices. Studies can set 6 to 24 scored scenes. The scene stays hidden during all questions. Desktop or laptop only; pauses and slow frames are recorded.
Scores
- Scene Question Accuracy%
- Share of all scene questions answered correctly.
- Higher means more correct answers
- Location Accuracy%
- Share of location questions answered correctly.
- Higher means more correct locations
- Movement Accuracy%
- Share of questions about movement direction answered correctly.
- Higher means more correct directions
- Prediction Accuracy%
- Share of one-second position predictions answered correctly.
- Higher means more correct predictions
- Question Response Timems
- Median time for correct answers at or after 100 ms.
- Informational
- Anticipationscount
- Question responses under 100 ms.
- Lower supports interpretation
- Pausescount
- Scene interruptions after focus loss, hiding the tab or resizing, counted once per scene.
- Lower supports interpretation
- Long Frames%
- Share of animation frames longer than 50 ms, counted once per scene.
- Above 0.05 is flagged
- Completed Scenescount
- Scenes with all three questions recorded.
- Informational
- Answered Questionscount
- Scene questions recorded in the scored run.
- Informational
- Planned Questionscount
- Questions planned for the run.
- Informational
Use and evidence
73 papers from 2021 to 2025 name this task in their title or abstract, up 12% compared with 2016 to 2020. That ranks it 296 of 582 test families in our census. See the counts for every test.
Show the numbers
| Year | Papers |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 17 |
| 2024 | 19 |
| 2023 | 13 |
| 2022 | 12 |
| 2021 | 12 |
| 2020 | 16 |
| 2019 | 15 |
| 2018 | 9 |
| 2017 | 16 |
| 2016 | 9 |
| 2015 | 16 |
| 2014 | 11 |
| 2013 | 14 |
| 2012 | 10 |
| 2011 | 4 |
| 2010 | 2 |
| 2009 | 2 |
| 2008 | 1 |
| 2007 | 4 |
| 2006 | 6 |
| 2005 | 4 |
| 2004 | 5 |
| 2003 | 3 |
| 2002 | 2 |
| 2001 | 1 |
| 2000 | 4 |
Use grade D
30 to 99 papers from 2021 to 2025.
Evidence grade C
At least 2 test-retest papers, 30 reliability or validity papers or 3 registered clinical studies.
- Papers on test-retest reliability
- 1
- Papers on reliability or validity
- 44
- Registered clinical studies using it as an outcome
- 3
Measured on ConductCognition
Pooled across the studies that feed our platform norms, by device group. A figure needs 50 or more people.
No pooled figure yet.
Note on the counts: Original short passive road scenes and probes; not SAGAT items or driving-fitness assessment..
How the grades work
Use: A is 1,000 or more papers from 2021 to 2025, B 300 to 999, C 100 to 299, D 30 to 99 and E fewer than 30. Evidence: A means at least 25 papers report its test-retest reliability and at least 25 registered clinical studies use it as an outcome; B, at least 8 test-retest papers, and either 5 registered clinical studies or 150 reliability or validity papers; C, at least 2 test-retest papers, 30 reliability or validity papers or 3 registered clinical studies; D, little published measurement evidence found. The counts measure use. They include every paper that names the task in its title or abstract. Grades describe the published research on this task, not ConductCognition's version of it.
Source: ConductCognition test census 0.39.0, counted 10 November 2026 from OpenAlex and ClinicalTrials.gov.
Task design
The trial sequence as the test runs in ConductCognition.
- Scene
- A pedestrian, car and cyclist in original drawings. Their positions and movements are set before the run.
- Freeze
- The scene blanks without warning after 6,000 to 11,000 ms. The final frame supplies the answers. The road remains hidden during the questions.
- Questions
- 3 per scene: location, movement and prediction one second ahead. Each asks about a different road user and offers 3 choices, shuffled with the question order.
- Scenes
- 12 scenes as standard, with 6 to 24 available. A short break comes after every 6 scenes.
- Practice
- 2 practice scenes with the correct answer after each question.
- Scores
- Overall question accuracy and separate location, movement and prediction accuracy. Also records response time, pauses and slow frames.
This short passive task adapts the freeze-probe method using our own scenes and questions, rather than reproducing SAGAT operational simulations. Scores describe these scenes and do not establish fitness to drive. No percentile output.
Quality checks
Each session is marked valid, needs review or invalid, with the reason, before you see its scores.
Scored rows: questions after completed scenes in the scored run. Three choices give a one-third chance level. Incomplete runs, repeated choices, pauses and long frames are flagged; responses under 100 ms follow the timed-test rule.
Why these rules
Each question has one answer determined by the scene's final position or movement. The blank display prevents answers from being read from the scene.
No percentile. Scores and quality flags only.
Running this test
Settings you can change
| Setting | Standard | Allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Scenes | 12 | 6 to 24 |
Yearly plans can change settings within these limits. Free and pay-as-you-go studies use the standard settings.
Need a setting this test does not have?
Devices and languages
- Timed test: participants need a desktop or laptop with a mouse or trackpad. Participant devices
- Languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Simplified) and Japanese.
- Available on: Every plan, including the free plan.
- No percentile. Scores and quality flags only. How norms work
- Recruiting online? See the setup guides for Prolific, Sona Systems, CloudResearch Connect and Qualtrics.
Cite and describe
Participants completed the Road Scene Awareness Task in a web browser (ConductCognition task version 1.0.0, scoring version 1.0.0; Endsley, 1995), with the standard settings (scenes: 12). The main score was scene question accuracy (share of all scene questions answered correctly).
ConductCognition versions: task version 1.0.0, scoring version 1.0.0. Every export records the versions each session used, for a methods section.
- Endsley, M. R. (1995). Measurement of situation awareness in dynamic systems. Human Factors, 37(1), 65-84. https://doi.org/10.1518/001872095779049499Unpredictable freezes, hidden displays and questions scored against the simulation state.
Source papers
- Endsley, M. R. (1995). Measurement of situation awareness in dynamic systems. Human Factors, 37(1), 65-84.Paradigm source, Adults
Questions
How long does the Road Scene Awareness Task take?
About 6 to 9 minutes, as listed in the test library.
What device does a participant need?
Timed test: participants need a desktop or laptop with a mouse or trackpad. The browser must be Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari.
What scores does it produce?
Scene Question Accuracy, Location Accuracy, Movement Accuracy, Prediction Accuracy, Question Response Time, Anticipations, Pauses, Long Frames, Completed Scenes, Answered Questions and Planned Questions. Each session is also marked valid, needs review or invalid, with the reason.
How widely is the Road Scene Awareness Task used in research?
73 papers from 2021 to 2025 name it in their title or abstract, up 12% compared with 2016 to 2020. That ranks it 296 of 582 test families in the ConductCognition test census (use grade D). Source: ConductCognition test census 0.39.0, counted 10 November 2026 from OpenAlex and ClinicalTrials.gov.
How much reliability evidence does the Road Scene Awareness Task have?
In the published research, 1 paper reports its test-retest reliability and 3 registered clinical studies use it as an outcome (evidence grade C in the ConductCognition test census).
Does it report a percentile?
No. Scores and quality flags only.
Which settings can a researcher change?
Scenes (6 to 24). Settings can be changed on yearly plans; free and pay-as-you-go studies use the standard settings.
Which languages can participants use?
Participants can take this test in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Simplified) and Japanese, with its words in the same language. English is on every plan, and the other languages come with yearly plans. Have a native speaker read the machine-translated text before launch.
Is this a clinical test?
No. ConductCognition is for research use only. It runs, scores and exports the test; clinical interpretation is outside the platform.
Every test: the full test list.
Run this test in your next study
Start free with 10 free participants on any test, then use participant credits or a yearly plan.