Linking Useful Field of View (UFoV) and Social Competence among College Students

Oren Shtayermman,

Published on: 2022-10-17

Abstract

Currently, socialization among college students on campus is an area of interest for many researchers. The interest is related to the transition to college life and independent living as well as developing new social skills. Because social skills require individuals to use attention and processing speed, this study aimed to examine this relationship using the Useful Field of View (UFoV) test. A total of 48 undergraduate college students participated in a cross-sectional study over a period of two months. This exploratory study revealed some interesting and new ways to evaluate social competence and to link it to the sub tests of the UFoV (processing speed, selective attention, and divided attention). Gender and racial differences were found in relation to social competence. Differences were also found in the levels of selective attention between genders and between sexual orientation groups. The study also revealed correlations between depression and some of the subscales of social competence as well as the total score for social competence. Due to the exploratory nature of the study and the lack of previous research in the area of UFoV and social competence, and because the study had a small sample with a homogenous attribute, a larger study with a diverse sample is needed to better understand the relationship between these concepts.

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