Individual Differences in Dual-Task Performance.
Abstract
Eleven right-handed males participated in an experiment examining individual differences in multiple-task performance. Three task combinations were used in the study. The first was composed of a memory task and a classification task. The second consisted of two identical one-dimensional compensatory tracking tasks. The third was a dichotic listening task. On Day 1 of the experiment the subjects practiced each task alone. On Days 2, 3, and 4 they performed primarily under dual-task conditions. However, periodically dual-task practice was interrupted to reassess single-task performance. All dual-task data were analyzed first to determine when stability occurred. Each subject's stabilized data from the tracking-tracking and memory-classification combinations then were corrected for the appropriate single-task baseline. Finally, the subjects were grouped according to which of three response strategies they used to perform the memory-classification task combination. These strategies were a massed strategy (in which the subject would emit a series of response to one task before responding to the other), an alternating responses strategy, and a simultaneous response strategy. A two-way repeated measures MANOVA conducted on the stabilized adjusted data indicated both a significant effect of trials and groups. Possible sources of the between-group differences are discussed. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 01, 1980
- Accession Number
- ADA099977
Entities
People
- Diane L. Damos
- Thomas E. Smist
Organizations
- University at Buffalo