RT journal article
T1 Cognitive performance and psychological wellbeing in hybrid human-robot crews in space analog missions: The delayed unwinding paradox
A1 González de la Torre Benítez, Gabriel
A1 Ramallo Luna, Miguel Ángel
A1 López Ramírez, Juan Antonio
A1 González de la Torre Muñoz, Sara
A1 Parro, Victorino
A1 Lominchar, Miguel A.
A1 García Villadangos, Miriam
A1 Carrasco Gómez, Martín
A1 Zarandona Palacio, Pedro José
A1 Claeys, Kato
A1 Avila Rauch, Celia
A1 Mintus, Agata
A1 Ceballos, David
A1 Violadé, Carlos
A1 Ramirez, Cristina
A1 Ráčková, Lucie
A2 Psicología
A2 Tecnologías del Medio Ambiente
K1 NASA-TLX
K1 WinSCAT
K1 Hybrid teams
K1 UAV
K1 Space analogs
K1 Cognitive performance
K1 POMS
K1 Unwinding
K1 Workload
AB BackgroundThe integration of UAVs and AI assistants into human exploration teams introduces both operational benefits and novel psychophysiological demands. As planetary exploration missions increasingly rely on human-robot collaboration, understanding the cognitive and psychological consequences of hybrid operational work becomes a critical priority for crew health and mission success. This study examines cognitive performance and psychological wellbeing in a Hybrid Team (n = 6) during a multi-day cave analog mission, comparing results against a pooled Non-Hybrid Teams dataset (N = 45; 8 missions).MethodsNASA TLX (Task Load Index), WinSCAT cognitive assessment (pre, mid, post-mission), DASS-21, and POMS were administered at Astroland Ares Station (Cantabria, Spain). Mission operations incorporated UAV systems and simulated 7-min one-way Mars communication delays with Mission Control. Between-group comparisons used Mann-Whitney U tests; within-group longitudinal changes used Wilcoxon signed-rank and Friedman tests.ResultsThe Hybrid Team showed significantly higher pre-mission sustained attention (CPT: 95.9 ± 1.4% vs 81.7 ± 18.4%; U = 200, p = .010, r = 0.67) and stable cognitive performance across all WinSCAT subtests. Non-Hybrid Teams showed significant CPT improvement over time (χ2 = 12.47, p = .002). Post-mission tension was significantly elevated in the Hybrid Team vs Non-Hybrid Teams (39.7 vs 32.4; p = .005) despite Non-Hybrid Teams showing significant tension reduction (p < .001). Fatigue increased in the Hybrid Team post-mission (W = 1, p = .094) while decreasing in Non-Hybrid Teams (p = .013).ConclusionsHybrid Team integration preserves cognitive performance but produced a post-mission unwinding failure pattern characterized by sustained activation that prevented emotional deactivation. Implications for recovery protocols and hybrid mission design are discussed.
PB Elsevier
SN 0094-5765
YR 2027
FD 2027-01
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10498/40337
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10498/40337
LA eng
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Cádiz
RD 05-nov-2026