Inaccuracy of Affordance Judgments for Firefighters Wearing Personal Protective Equipment

In order to safely negotiate cluttered and dangerous environments, firefighters must efficiently and effectively make affordance judgments. Failure to do so could put them at risk for slips, trips, and falls, which are major causes of injuries for firefighters. We examined how well firefighters were able to perceive their obstacle crossing abilities while wearing firefighting protective equipment. Firefighters were asked to judge whether they could cross over, under, and through different obstacles that simulated idealized fireground situations. Perceptual judgment errors were found for each obstacle type, the largest occurring with an overestimation of ability to pass under an obstacle. Years of experience had a moderate positive correlation with absolute judgment error in the “over” and “under” obstacles. Overall, a general lack of awareness of their personal protective equipment for obstacle crossing ability was observed. A better understanding of how to reduce judgment error while wearing firefighter protective gear would likely decrease the risk of injuries on the fireground.