Information access in a dual-task context: testing a model of optimal strategy selection

Area of Science:

• Human Factors
• Cognitive Psychology
• Aviation Psychology

Background:

• Pilots access critical information from hierarchical aviation databases.
• Multitasking environments in aviation increase cognitive load and task complexity.
• Effective information access is crucial for flight safety and performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate pilot performance in accessing hierarchical aviation databases under single-task and dual-task conditions.
• To analyze pilot strategies for allocating resources, specifically viewports, between an information access task and an altitude-monitoring task.
• To identify factors influencing viewport allocation and navigational difficulties in a multitasking flight environment.

Main Methods:

• Experiment 1: Pilots navigated a hierarchical database under single-task conditions.
• Experiment 2: Pilots performed the database navigation task while time-sharing with an altitude-monitoring task of varying bandwidth and priority.
• Dual-task analysis involved observing viewport allocation strategies between the information task and the monitoring task.

Main Results:

• Viewport allocation was generally biased towards the monitoring task.
• Allocation strategy showed limited sensitivity to task difficulty and relative priorities.
• Certain navigational difficulties did not adaptively influence the viewport selection strategy.
• Pilots' dual-task performance was impacted by suboptimal viewport management.

Conclusions:

• Current viewport management strategies may not be optimal for pilots in complex aviation scenarios.
• Recommendations include developing tools for direct database access (e.g., jumping to the top) and providing dual-viewports.
• Enhanced training on optimum viewport management strategies is essential for improving pilot performance in multitask environments.