A. Arca

■ Human factors & design research

Alejandro Arca, Ph.D.I study how people actually behave inside complex systems, then turn that evidence into designs teams build.

Eight years of mixed-methods research across VR training products, aerospace, defense, and transportation safety. Most recently I designed a training performance hub in Figma that developers shipped straight from my prototype.

Based inSouth Florida
Trained atPh.D., UCF Human Factors
FocusUX research · HF engineering
See my work LinkedIn
Portrait of Alejandro Arca

Selected work

Research that changed what got built

Four projects, from a shipped product interface to field research that now shapes how operators are selected.

■ Featured · Adaptive Immersion Technologies

XReach LMS: a place for trainees to see how they're really doing

VR maintenance training tracked whether trainees finished scenarios, not whether they could do the work. Trainees had nowhere to see their progress, and instructors had no easy way to point them to what to practice next.

I designed the full learning management system in Figma: gradebook, player overview, performance trends, after-action review, scenario library, and scenario generator. I tested every version with trainees, instructors, and stakeholders and iterated many times on what they told me.

  1. ListenFeedback from trainees, instructors, and stakeholders
  2. PrototypeFull LMS flows built in Figma
  3. IterateMany rounds of testing and revision
  4. ShipDevelopers built from the prototype's HTML

Outcome: the prototype became the build. Developers took its HTML directly into the in-game LMS that runs inside the VR training.

Role
UX researcher and designer
Tools
Figma, feedback sessions
Users
Trainees, instructors, admins
Principle
Measure performance, not completion

University of Central Florida

Usability and operability of a consumer VR headset

Question
How usable is the Oculus Quest 2 for its intended users, and where does it break down?
What I did
Designed and budgeted the study: screeners, task scenarios, performance measures.
Result
Prioritized design recommendations.
Study designRecruitingUsability testing

Adaptive Immersion Technologies

Critical incident research with drone operators

Question
What separates operators who handle critical incidents well?
What I did
Led focus groups and field research; built an incident database of failure modes and decision points.
Result
Co-developed the competency framework used to set requirements and selection criteria.
Focus groupsField researchSynthesis

UCF Transportation Research Group

Trust, workload, and attention in automated systems

Question
How do attention, workload, fatigue, and trust shape how people use automation?
What I did
Designed and ran 6+ experimental and longitudinal studies, including psychophysiology.
Result
Published in Ergonomics and HFES proceedings.
ExperimentsECGR · SPSS

Experience

Where I've done the work

  1. Aug 2024 – now

    Research Scientist

    Adaptive Immersion Technologies, Inc.

    • Lead human-centered research for aerospace and defense training products, turning operator needs into requirements and evidence.
    • Designed the XReach LMS in Figma and iterated with users until developers built it from the prototype.
    • Present findings at I/ITSEC, SOF Week, TSIS, and AR/VR Summits; build AI-assisted analysis workflows with human review.
  2. Aug 2019 – Aug 2024

    Graduate Research Scientist & Co-Lab Manager

    Transportation Research Group Lab, University of Central Florida

    • Co-managed the lab and led a research stream end to end; trained and supervised undergraduate researchers.
    • Ran 6+ studies on attention, workload, fatigue, and trust in automation.
  3. Jun 2020 – Jan 2021

    Human Factors Intern

    Embraer Executive Aircraft · Melbourne, FL

    • Task analyses, structured observation, and usability assessments; wrote a human factors report the team adopted as its working reference.
Ph.D., Human Factors & Cognitive PsychologyUniversity of Central Florida · 2025
M.A., Human Factors & Cognitive PsychologyUniversity of Central Florida · 2022
B.A., Psychology (Honors)Florida Atlantic University · 2019

Methods

How I find things out

I pick the method to fit the decision, and pair what people say with what they do.

Discovery

  • Interviews & interview guides
  • Focus groups
  • Field observation
  • Task & cognitive task analysis

Evaluation

  • Usability testing
  • Concept testing
  • Figma prototyping
  • Design reviews (MIL-STD-1472G, FAA HF-STD-001)

Measurement

  • Surveys & measure design
  • Experimental & longitudinal design
  • Psychophysiology (ECG)
  • R, SPSS, Python (developing)

Making it land

  • Qualitative coding & synthesis
  • Requirements & acceptance criteria
  • Leadership storytelling
  • Coaching other researchers

Publications

Selected writing

  • 2025Arca, Ferraro & Mangos. Game-based tools for highly automated work: Trends, challenges, and opportunities. In AI and Gamification Technologies for Complex Work, CRC Press.
  • 2023Arca, Mouloua & Hancock. Individual differences, ADHD diagnosis, and driving performance: effects of traffic density and distraction type. Ergonomics.
  • 2022Arca, Sablyak & Mouloua. The role of nomophobia and cellular presence in distracted driving. HFES 66th Annual Meeting.
  • 2022Arca, Chouljian & Mouloua. Gender differences in distracted driving: A psychophysiological approach. HFES 66th Annual Meeting.
  • 2020Arca, Stanford & Mouloua. Individual differences, attention, and memory deficits in driver distraction. HFES 64th Annual Meeting.

Design notes

This site follows the principles I research

A few deliberate choices, so the page is easy to use for everyone who visits it.

Hick's law

Few, clear choices

Five sections, always one tap away in the top bar, with the current section marked as you scroll.

Fitts's law

Targets sized for thumbs

Every button and link in the controls is at least 44 pixels tall, the size recommended for touch.

Contrast

Readable in light or dark

Text colors are chosen for strong contrast in both themes. Switch with the button at the top.

Keyboard

No mouse required

A skip link, visible focus outlines, and arrow keys to step through the LMS screens.

Feedback

You always know where you are

A reading-progress line, a screen counter on the gallery, and a confirmation when you copy my email.

Motion

Respects your settings

If your device asks for reduced motion, animations and smooth scrolling turn off.

■ Contact

Let's talk about your research problem.

alexarca321@gmail.com linkedin.com/in/alejandro-arca