Item: Smartphones as Support for Out-Of-Bounds Skier Decisions: A Pilot Study of How Information About Terrain and Avalanche Danger in a Mobile Application Affects Behaviour in Off-Piste Terrain
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Title: Smartphones as Support for Out-Of-Bounds Skier Decisions: A Pilot Study of How Information About Terrain and Avalanche Danger in a Mobile Application Affects Behaviour in Off-Piste Terrain
Proceedings: International Snow Science Workshop 2014 Proceedings, Banff, Canada
Authors:
- Stefan Martensson [ Luleaa University of Technology, Sweden ]
- Petter Palmgren [ Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, Sweden ]
- Jenny Gunnholt [ Gothenburg University, Sweden ]
- Per-Olov Wikberg [ Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, Sweden ]
Date: 2014-09-29
Abstract: In a smartphone, a skier can access avalanche information on the go. This paper shows a new app for making decisions, which combines ATES classification with danger ratings and then presenting this in the form of Avaluator recommendations directly on a GPS-positioned map. We have examined how actual skier behaviour in the terrain is affected by the use of a smartphone as a decision tool. Previous studies on behaviour have mainly focused on surveys or on human factors; it is only now with smartphones with GPS and apps for logging location data that we can study actual movement in the terrain. During 10 weeks, 20 skiers used a GPS-based map app in which they answered questions before and after the day's skiing. The app also logged their actual movements during the day. The questions surveyed the subjective approach to risk and skiing. The experiment was conducted in two phases, first a control phase when the app only showed the current avalanche danger and a GPS-map, secondly an effect phase when the app also showed the combination of terrain and avalanche danger using Avaluator colours (Normal Caution, Extra Caution, Not Recommended) projected directly on map as a layer. Our results show that a mobile application can be a successful way to communicate avalanche information in the future. The results also imply it is better to communicate where to ski than to warn where not to ski. At the individual level, we could also see changes in skier's behaviour when they were given access to avalanche danger and avalanche terrain in a single map view.
Object ID: ISSW14_paper_O9.05.pdf
Language of Article: English
Presenter(s):
Keywords: Avaluator, Human Factors, Decision Making, Risk Management
Page Number(s): 254-260
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