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Deficits in job satisfaction and performance have been reported among operators of modern cordless telephone switchboards relative to the operation of the older cord switchboards. The attentional demands of these switchboards were investigated using, as an index of attention, the amplitude of the cortical evoked potential (CEP) to an appropriate task-relevant event. However, no reliable differences in the CEP were obtained; nor indeed were differences in alpha activity or heart rate present. Emphasis is placed upon the methodological importance of this contribution in drawing attention to the CEP as a measure of psychological processes in applied contexts.

The relationship between the final factors and the composition of the original variance in a factor analysis is discussed, It is argued that, where factors defining intra individual processes are required, it is inappropriate to include interindividual variability in the original variance. A case study is reported illustrating this point. Factors defining intraindividual mood dimensions were obtained to assess differences in the self-rated mood of telephone operators as a function of switchboard design. Scores on a "well-being" factor were found to be lower for operators on a modern cordless switchboard than on the older style cord switchboard. The analysis also revealed significant changes in well-being and a second factor, labeled "competence," over the working day.

Driver behavior in the vehicle-following situation, a major source of road accidents, was investigated using a controlled-track experiment. Drivers were found to adopt headways of approximately 2 s irrespective of speed of travel, driving experience, or instructed probability of the leading vehicle's stopping. Under the optimal conditions used, drivers demonstrated that such headways were more than adequate to avoid tail-end collisions in an emergency situation. The implications of these results for the development of perceptual-motor support devices and the attribution of causes in road accidents are discussed.