Secondary Task Assessment of the Workload Associated with Spatial Pattern Search under Automatic and Controlled Processing

Abstract

This experiment investigated the workload associated with both a consistently mapped (CM) and variably mapped (VM) version of a memory/visual search task that required the processing of spatial pattern information representative of that found with some Command and Control (C²) systems. A secondary loading task paradigm which required concurrent performance of an additional spatial pattern search task was employed. The results demonstrated superior dual-task performance relative to single-task baselines on both the primary and secondary tasks when the CM version of the task was performed. The results indicate that the development of automatic processing through training can reduce the workload associated with processing spatial patterns of the type employed by C² operators.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Cooper

B. P.

Eggemeier

F. T.

Elvers

G. C.

(1992, April). Generalizing Search/Detection Principles to Spatial Memory/Visual Search. Paper presented at the Southern Society for Philosophy and Psychology Annual Meeting. Memphis, TN.

Eggemeier

F. T.

Fisk

A. D.

Robbins

R. J.

Lawless

M. T.

(1988). Application of automatic/controlled processing theory to training tactical command and control skills: II. Evaluation of a task analytic methodology. Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 32nd Annual Meeting, (pp. 1232–1236). Santa Monica, CA: Human Factors Society.

Fisk

A. D.

Schneider

(1983). Category and word search: Generalizing search principles to complex processing. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 9, 177–195.

Schneider

(1985). Training high-performance skills: Fallacies and guidelines. Human Factors, 27, 285–300.

Schneider

Dumais

S. T.

Shiffrin

R. M.

(1984). Automatic and control processing and attention. In Parasuraman

Davies

D. R.

(Eds.), Varieties of Attention (pp. 1–27). New York: Academic Press.

Schneider

Fisk

A. D.

(1982). Concurrent automatic and controlled visual search: Can processing occur without resource cost? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 8, 261–278.

Schneider

Fisk

A. D.

(1984). Automatic category search and its transfer. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 10, 1–15.

Shiffrin

R. M.

(1988). Attention. In Atkinson

R. C.

Herrnstein

R. J.

Luce

R. D.

(Eds.), Stevens' handbook of experimental psychology (pp. 739–811). New York: Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Shiffrin

R. M.

Schneider

(1977). Controlled and automatic human information processing: II. Perceptual learning, automatic attending, and a general theory. Psychological Review, 84, 127–190.

10.

Strayer

D. L.

Kramer

A. F.

(1990). Attentional requirements of automatic and controlled processing. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 16, 67–82.