Counteracting skill decay: four refresher interventions and their effect on skill and knowledge retention in a...

Area of Science:

• Human Factors
• Cognitive Psychology
• Process Automation

Background:

• Skill decay in process automation remains under-investigated.
• Effective skill and knowledge retention are crucial for operational safety and efficiency.
• Refresher interventions (RIs) are potential solutions to mitigate skill decay.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically investigate the impact of different refresher interventions (RIs) on skill and knowledge retention in process automation.
• To compare the effectiveness of four distinct RIs based on proceduralization, testing-effect, and mental practice theories.
• To determine how different RIs influence the retention of procedural skills versus declarative knowledge.

Main Methods:

• Two experimental studies were conducted with participants performing a simulated process control task.
• Study 1 compared 'Practice' and 'Skill Demonstration' RIs for skill retention.
• Study 2 compared 'Symbolic Rehearsal' and 'Procedural Knowledge Test' RIs for knowledge retention.

Main Results:

• Both 'Practice' and 'Skill Demonstration' RIs supported skill retention, with 'Skill Demonstration' incurring higher mental workload.
• 'Symbolic Rehearsal' and 'Procedural Knowledge Test' RIs supported knowledge retention but resulted in moderate skill decay.
• The effectiveness of RIs varied depending on whether they targeted skill or knowledge retention.

Conclusions:

• Refresher interventions differentially affect skill and knowledge retention in process automation.
• The choice of RI should align with task demands and the specific type of retention (skill vs. knowledge) required.
• Further research is needed to optimize RI design for sustained performance in automated systems.