Abstract
Visual search is a routine activity that people perform countless times each day. Search is also crucial for certain professions (e.g., airport security, radiology), and here we examine how the extensive practice gained through these careers alters search abilities. By comparing undergraduate participants from Duke University and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Raleigh-Durham Airport, we examine the effects of experience on visual search performance. In a laboratory we established at the airport, TSA officers completed search tasks and individual differences assessments during their normal work hours. Results from several search tasks demonstrated both similarities and differences in performance between the undergraduates and TSA officers; for example, the officers were more diligent searchers in a single-target search, but both populations showed performance decrements in multiple-target searches. By manipulating search parameters and experimental conditions (e.g., explicit instructions, time constraints), we reveal nuanced effects gained through visual search experience.
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