An Examination of Personality as a Predictor of Guard Behavior in a Virtual Environment

Military personnel need access to realistic training tools that can provide a safe environment in which to acquire skills that will generalize to real world tasks. A virtual environment (VE) is one such tool. The focus of the present study was to evaluate a VE as a training tool for military guards. The first goal was to examine the potential of VE technology to provide effective training for standing watch at a military checkpoint. The second goal was to study a set of personality traits that might predict performance. Participants completed the NEO Personality Inventory and were trained to perform the role of a military checkpoint guard within a CAVE Automatic Virtual Environment. Trainees interacted with virtual drivers and determined whether drivers exhibited suspicious behavior and met identification requirements for entry onto a fictional base. Results indicated that participants were able to use VE technology to (a) familiarize and immerse themselves in a military checkpoint task, (b) improve performance on training scenarios, and (c) transfer their knowledge from one session to a subsequent session. Examination of personality traits yielded significant results only for openness as a predictor of performance. Collectively, these findings suggest that VEs show potential for scenario-based training