Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT)

Background

The Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) is one one of the most widely used measures of behavioral alertness, tracking response times to unpredictable visual stimuli over a sustained period of time.

The Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) was developed in 1985 by David Dinges and John Powell who designed the test as an objective, simple quantitative measure of vigilant attention under the influence of sleep deprivation. First termed a 'visual reaction time task', the task was later renamed as 'The Psychomotor Vigilance Test' as sustained attention over time is a key element of the PVT. The basic task of the PVT is simply to press a response button as fast as possible once a target stimulus (e.g. a red stopwatch) has been detected. The test usually lasts over a period of 10 minutes. A shorter version, the PVT-Brief (PVT-B), that runs the procedure for 3 minutes was published in 2011. The PVT-B can be used in settings where a longer testing period is impractical, such as for large scale testing or screenings.

The PVT has been shown time and time again to be a reliable, highly sensitive instrument to sleep deprivation.

Task Procedure

Participants are instructed to press the spacebar as soon as a red stopwatch stimulus appears on screen. Once pressed, the response time (in ms) is reported back to the participant. The red stimulus appears unpredictably every 2 to 10s in the PVT (PVT-B: 0-4s) and the task lasts (by default) 10 minutes (PVT-B: 3 minutes). Participants work through a habituation phase of 1 minute (PVT-B: 10s) before the test phase starts without further notice. Responses that are made too early are noted with an error message and a new trial is started.

What it Measures

The Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) is a measure of behavioral alertness and sustained attention

Psychological domains

• Sustained Attention: Ability to maintain focus and quickly adapt one's thoughts and behavior to current demands

Main Performance Metrics

• Response Times: response times (in ms) to stimulus presentation
• Response Times Variability: response time variability across the task duration
• Number 0f Lapses: number of times a participant's response time exceeds 500ms (PVT) or 355ms (PVT-B)

Psychiatric Conditions

PVT performance is affected in the following groups of people

• Narcolepsy
• Sleep Apnea
• Insomnia
• Sleep Deprivation

Test Variations

References

Search Google Scholar for peer-reviewed, published research using the Inquisit Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT).

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Dinges, D. F., & Powell, J. W. (1985). Microcomputer analyses of performance on a portable, simple visual RT task during sustained operations. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 17(6), 652-655.

Mathias Basner, MD, PhD, MSc, David F. Dinges, PhD, Maximizing Sensitivity of the Psychomotor Vigilance Test (pvt) to Sleep Loss, Sleep, Volume 34, Issue 5, 1 May 2011, Pages 581–591, https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/34.5.581

Basner, M., Mollicone, M., & Dinges, D. F. (2011). Validity and sensitivity of a brief Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT-B) to total and partial sleep deprivation. Acta Astronautica, 69(11-12), 949-959

Thomann, J.; R. Baumann, C.R.; Landolt, H.-P.; & Werth, E (2014). Psychomotor Vigilance Task Demonstrates Impaired Vigilance in Disorders with Excessive Daytime Sleepiness. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, Vol. 10, 1019-1024.