Abstract
The proliferation of sedentary, more cognitively demanding computer-mediated work, calls attention to the need for methods to measure mental work load. The present research describes two experiments in which participants performed a machine paced task of entering five and/or nine digit zip codes into a computer. The zip code data was presented on a computer screen for twelve four minute trials where the rate of zip code presentation varied from trial to trial. Using the psychophysical scaling method of magnitude estimation, participants made a judgment of task difficulty after each trial period. In Experiment 1, four females participated in a repeated measures within-subjects design performing each digit task condition for five consecutive days. In Experiment 2, a between-subjects design was adopted where 42 females performed either the five or the nine digit data-entry for only one testing session. Regression analyses using the independent variable of stimulus presentation rate and the dependent variable of judgments of perceived difficulty resulted in R2s of .90 or better for both digit conditions in both experiments. T-tests were conducted to see if different task parameters would affect difficulty judgments; these were statistically significant to the .001 level in both experiments. The results support the notion that magnitude estimation is a reliable method for scaling subjective perceptions of difficulty, which may be an important component of mental workload.
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call