Physiological and Dual Task Assessment of Workload during Tracking and Simulated Flight.
Abstract
A visuomotor task of moderate complexity (tracking) and one of high complexity (simulated aircraft carrier landing) were performed alone, then in combination with a tone discrimination task at two levels of difficulty in usual dual task fashion. Measures of autonomic nervous system activation (heart rate, skin conductance) and central nervous system information processing (event related potentials) were quantified continuously during performance of all tasks. The dual task results were typical, given that most subjects treated the tone discrimination task as 'secondary' (low priority): tone discrimination performance degraded when the tone mask was combined with the tracking task and degraded even more when the tone task was combined with the carrier landing task. While dual task methodology adequately described gross changes in workload, the physiological data permitted much more detailed interpretations and descriptions of training effects (practice), tone mask information processing, individual differences, and viscuomotor task control parameters than was possible by analysis of secondary task performance. It is concluded that the physiological method has distinct advantages over the dual task method, due mostly to the nonintrusive nature and the greater detail of results afforded by the former method. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1981
- Accession Number
- ADA119218
Entities
People
- Cary Cheatham
- Ernest Lindholm
- George Buckland
Organizations
- Arizona State University