Cited by 958Sleep and Work-Related FatigueSleep and Wakefulness ResearchMind wandering and attention

Maximizing sensitivity of the Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) to sleep loss

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Basner, Mathias, Dinges, David F.·2011·Sleep

Abstract

STUDY OBJECTIVES: The psychomotor vigilance test (PVT) is among the most widely used measures of behavioral alertness, but there is large variation among published studies in PVT performance outcomes and test durations. To promote standardization of the PVT and increase its sensitivity and specificity to sleep loss, we determined PVT metrics and task durations that optimally discriminated sleep deprived subjects from alert subjects. DESIGN: Repeated-measures experiments involving 10-min PVT assessments every 2 h across both acute total sleep deprivation (TSD) and 5 days of chronic partial sleep deprivation (PSD). SETTING: Controlled laboratory environment. PARTICIPANTS: 74 healthy subjects (34 female), aged 22-45 years. INTERVENTIONS: TSD experiment involving 33 h awake (N = 31 subjects) and a PSD experiment involving 5 nights of 4 h time in bed (N = 43 subjects). MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: In a paired t-test paradigm and for both TSD and PSD, effect sizes of 10 different PVT performance outcomes were calculated. Effect sizes were high for both TSD (1.59-1.94) and PSD (0.88-1.21) for PVT metrics related to lapses and to measures of psychomotor speed, i.e., mean 1/RT (response time) and mean slowest 10% 1/RT. In contrast, PVT mean and median RT outcomes scored low to moderate effect sizes influenced by extreme values. Analyses facilitating only portions of the full 10-min PVT indicated that for some outcomes, high effect sizes could be achieved with PVT durations considerably shorter than 10 min, although metrics involving lapses seemed to profit from longer test durations in TSD. CONCLUSIONS: Due to their superior conceptual and statistical properties and high sensitivity to sleep deprivation, metrics involving response speed and lapses should be considered primary outcomes for the 10-min PVT. In contrast, PVT mean and median metrics, which are among the most widely used outcomes, should be avoided as primary measures of alertness. Our analyses also suggest that some shorter-duration PVT versions may be sensitive to sleep loss, depending on the outcome variable selected, although this will need to be confirmed in comparative analyses of separate duration versions of the PVT. Using both sensitive PVT metrics and optimal test durations maximizes the sensitivity of the PVT to sleep loss and therefore potentially decreases the sample size needed to detect the same neurobehavioral deficit. We propose criteria to better standardize the 10-min PVT and facilitate between-study comparisons and meta-analyses.

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  • When various cognitive domains were analyzed separately, shorter sleep duration was only modestly associated with poorer executive function, and not at all with sustained attention.

    “When various cognitive domains were analyzed separately, shorter sleep duration was only modestly associated with poorer executive function, and not at all with sustained attention -a cognitive domain highly sensitive to partial sleep deprivation in adults.30,31”
  • A decrease in sustained attention has been one of the most reliable effects of sleep deprivation.

    “In sleep deprivation research, a decrease in sustained attention has been one of the most reliable effects26.”
  • Vigilant attention performance and psychomotor speed, as assessed with the PVT, are affected early and progressively more severely by sleep deprivation.

    “Vigilant attention performance and psychomotor speed, as assessed with the PVT, are affected early and progressively more severely by sleep deprivation.86,166”

    From Circadian rhythms, sleep deprivation, and human performance (2013) · cites this paper as [86]

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Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. [9]9. Posner MI. Measuring alertness. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2008;1129:193-9.
  2. [18]18. Patrick GTW, Gilbert JA. On the effects of sleep loss. Psychol Rev 1896;3:469-83.
  3. [21]21. Davies DR, Parasuraman R. The psychology of vigilance. New York, NY: Academic Press, 1982.

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Authors
Basner, M., & Dinges, D. F.
Affiliations
University of Pennsylvania (US)
Corresponding author
Basner, Mathias
Venue
Sleep
Published
2011-05
Volume
34
Issue
5
Pages
581-591
ISSN
  • 0161-8105 (ISSN-L)
  • 1550-9109
OpenAlex
W143922047
Cited by
958
References
54
Citations by year
2026: 71 · 2025: 89 · 2024: 80 · 2023: 59 · 2022: 82 · 2021: 80 · 2020: 119 · 2019: 77 · 2018: 70 · 2017: 44 · 2016: 48 · 2015: 46 · 2014: 41 · 2013: 23 · 2012: 21
FWCI
37.57
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • SLEEP (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration
  • U.S. Department of Homeland Security
  • Eli Lilly and Company
  • Purdue University
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Institute of Nursing Research (R01NR004281)
  • National Center for Research Resources (UL1RR024134)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and Work-Related Fatigue
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Sleep and Wakefulness Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Mind wandering and attention
Keywords
psychomotor vigilance test, sleep deprivation, total sleep deprivation, sleep restriction, reaction time (psychology), effect size, test standardization, sleepiness detection, sample size reduction, psychomotor speed, neurobehavioral deficits
MeSH terms
Adult, Female, Humans, Male, Neuropsychological Tests, Psychomotor Performance, Reaction Time, Sensitivity and Specificity, Sleep Deprivation, Reproducibility of Results, Young Adult

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