Testing failure-to-identify hunting incidents using an immersive simulation: Is it viable?

INTRODUCTION

Failure-to-identify hunting incidents occur when a hunter, believing they are shooting at an animal, shoots at another human. Anecdotal evidence from the hunting community suggests that heightened arousal or excitement ("buck fever"), liquid intake, food intake, sleepiness and personality factors may be contributory factors to such incidents. Hunters who have shot other people based on failures-to-identify also report observing their hunted quarry for a considerable time before discharging their firearm. Concerning the complexity of hunting, we sought to ascertain if simulation would prove an effective platform for future safety research into this phenomenon.

METHOD

We conducted a video-based simulation of a deer hunt during a hunting exhibition show. Participants (N = 60) took part in one of four conditions - two types of scenario (having a good versus bad hunt) and two types of video (clear opportunity to shoot a stag versus clear opportunity to shoot an animal that cannot be identified). We investigated hunting outcomes and physiological arousal during the simulation, as well as personality traits, and self-reports of food, liquid intake and sleepiness. We also measured estimated versus actual time elapsed.

RESULTS

Pupil dilation, consistent with psychophysiological arousal, occurred when the hunter spotted their first stag, whereas Electrodermal Activity reduced. In the 10 s before shooting, EDA increased substantially. Time also appeared to slow down based on the participants' estimations of duration.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings corroborate suggestions of physiological arousal in the immediate lead-up to shooting but fall short of direct evidence for "buck fever" contributing to target misidentification. The simulation appeared to provide enough immersion to facilitate future research.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

This helps to understand the psychophysiological and temporal considerations of a hunter as they decide to shoot based on the information available to them at the time.