Showing papers on "Task analysis published in 1989"

Designing tasks for the communicative classroom

Abstract: Designing Tasks for the Communicative Classroom provides a balanced introduction to both the theoretical and practical aspects of communicative task design, and is aimed at all second and foreign language teachers who want to develop their own tasks, or adopt/adapt those of others. The major purpose is to integrate recent research and practice in language teaching into a framework for analysing learning tasks. This framework should help teachers select, adapt or create their own communicative tasks. The ideas presented are relevant to teachers working in or preparing for a range of teaching situations with a variety of learner types.

The Role of the Manager: What's Really Important in Different Management Jobs

Abstract: This article presents a study on the differences in management roles and activities across different levels and functions within an organization. The study asked more than a thousand managers to rate the relative importance of a number of managerial tasks to their jobs. It identified seven major factors or groups of management tasks. It confirmed that there are differences in the importance of managerial tasks across marketing, manufacturing and administrative functions. The study also revealed that the similarities of managerial tasks are greater than the differences. The practical implication of this finding is that a common approach to selecting, training and developing managers may developed within an organization.

Analysis and Use of a Task for Identifying Conceptions of Teaching Science

Abstract: An interview task to identify teachers' conceptions of teaching science was developed. Analysis of the task allows the identification of different components of the conception including the nature of science, learning, learner characteristics, rationale for instruction, preferred instructional techniques and their relationship to form a conception of teaching science. Use with pre‐service science teachers demonstrated that conceptions can be analyzed for internal consistency and stability over time in addition to differences within the components themselves.

Handbook of Task Analysis Procedures

Abstract: Preface Introduction: How to Use This Book Part I: Overview of Task Analysis Part II: Learning Analysis Techniques Part III: Job/Skill/Behavior Analysis Techniques Part IV: Subject Matter/Content Analysis Techniques Part V: Information Gathering Tools for Task Analysis Techniques Bibliography Index

Cognitive Task Analysis: An Approach to Knowledge Acquisition for Intelligent System Design

Abstract: Publisher Summary This chapter discusses some of the common pitfalls that arise in building intelligent support systems and describe a pragmatic knowledge acquisition approach for defining and building effective intelligent support systems. The cognitive task analysis provides an umbrella structure of domain semantics that organizes and makes explicit what particular pieces of knowledge mean about problem-solving in the domain. Acquiring and using such a domain semantics is essential (l) to specify what kinds of cognitive support functions are needed, (2) to specify what kinds of computational mechanisms are capable of providing such functions, (3) to clearly delineate machine performance boundaries, and (4) to build less brittle machine problem-solvers, for example, through features that enable the human problem-solver to extend and adapt the capability of the system to handle unanticipated situations. This is in contrast to technology-driven approaches where knowledge acquisition focuses on describing domain knowledge in terms of the syntax of particular computational mechanisms. In other words, the language of implementation is used as a substitute for a cognitive language of description. The cognitive task analysis approach redefines the knowledge acquisition problem: knowledge acquisition, first, is about deciding what kinds of intelligent systems would make a difference and, second, about what domain specific knowledge is needed to fuel those systems.

Effects of training in use of executive strategies on a verbal memory problem resulting from closed head injury.

Abstract: This case study reports attempts to improve the recall performance of an adolescent (GC) who had suffered a closed-head injury GC had a very limited range of ways of processing both spoken and written information and showed significant recall problems Initial training in the use of strategies for list learning resulted in improvement in paired-associate recall but showed that initiation and use of the newly learned strategies would not occur without prompting Executive strategy training was provided to improve GC's ability to identify a memory problem and to initiate a general plan for dealing with that problem This training involved consideration of task analysis, strategy selection and initiation, and monitoring of strategy use Evidence of long-term maintenance of improvement in level of recall on both paired-associate and free recall tests was noted following the executive strategy training

Strategy Instruction Research Comes of Age

Abstract: There is enormous contemporary interest in strategy instruction and in conducting research on this topic, with many researchers attempting to develop strategy interventions for use with both normal...

A Library System for Information Retrieval based on a Cognitive Task Analysis and Supported by an Icon-Based Interface

Abstract: The advent of modem information technology is significantly affecting many aspects of the system design process as well as the resulting user products. One tendency seems to be in the direction of integrated work stations which aim at supporting the broad diversification of tasks which professional users have to cope with. Therefore earlier efforts originating within the fields of “ergonomics” and “human factors” are undergoing a radical development in the direction of a serious concern with understanding and dealing with the basic interactions between people and their actual work situation. Major areas include user modelling, task performance, decision making and user-system communications. This concern has spawned an activity called cognitive engineering having the overall goal of providing good human-work interfaces and incorporating as a principle ingredient a cognitive task analysis (Pejtersen and Rasmussen 1986).

Sequential Analyses of Therapist-Client Interaction During Change Events: A Task-Focused Approach

Abstract: In this article, we describe a task-focused approach that uses sequential analyses as deductive techniques for studying therapist-client interactions in the context of clinical microtheories of change events. The methodology is demonstrated in a study of a class of change events in client-centered therapy referred to as the resolution of problematic reactions. Logit-loglinear analysis and binomial z scores were used to test the effects of therapist behavior, assessed by therapist vocal quality and by the therapist task-relevant system, on client process assessed by client vocal quality and by the Experiencing Scale. The results indicated (a) that therapist productive voice facilitated a shift from poor to productive client voice and a shift from low to intermediate experiencing and (b) that therapist task-specific interventions directed toward resolution facilitated shifts to high experiencing. This task-focused approach to sequential analyses has the potential to yield clinically and theoretically relevant findings. This study presents a task-focused approach to sequential analysis methodology in psychotherapy research. Basically, this approach combines the task analytic approach to the study of change events (Elliott, 1983a; Greenberg, 1986; Rice & Greenberg, 1984) with the methods of sequential analysis. It was designed to overcome three problems in previous studies: (a) the use of sequential analyses as inductive statistical techniques aimed at discovering sequences (Elliott, 1983b; Rice, 1983); (b) the disregard for the context of therapist-client sequential relationships, as evidenced by the practice of collapsing data across sessions (Lichtenberg & Heck, 1983); and (c) the lack of denned end points or change goals for the sequential process under study (Russell &TruU, 1986). In contrast to the purely empirical or inductive approach to pattern identification, task-focused sequential analysis methodology uses patterns of in-session performances that have been identified and understood by means of a task analysis to provide the focus for the formulation of hypotheses on the moment-tomoment client and therapist sequential patterns of interaction in the change events under study. These task-focused hypotheses are then tested by the statistical methods of sequential analysis. Thus, in this task-focused approach, sequential analyses are used as deductive techniques for testing particular hypotheses derived from theoretical models of change. Moreover, rather

Error analysis, instrument and object of task analysis

Abstract: After defining more precisely the notions of task, activity and error, this paper distinguishes different representations of the task: prescribed; supposed prescribed; projected; really carried out task. The deviations between these types of representations are then considered as aids for error analysis and the information which can be extracted of them are shown from some examples. Also indicated is the benefit the study of error recovery can bring to work analysis. Finally how can the defined frame of analysis be exploited together with the different ways it can suggest for the error analysis is examined.

The Relationship between M-Demand, Algorithms, and Problem Solving: A Neo-Piagetian Analysis.

Abstract: One of the most important implements developed by the neo-Piagetian theory is task analysis, that is, the evaluation of the M-demand of a problem. M-demand can be defined as: maximum number of steps that the subject must mobilize simultaneously in in the course of executing a task.

Evaluation of task and job skill linkage judgments used to develop test specifications

Abstract: The research on job analysis judgments, such as “time spent,” has been relatively limited, particularly with reference to external criteria remote from the job analysis operation. The more complex job analysis judgment linking a job skill to specific tasks or duties has not been systematically examined. While it would appear that a simple scaling of importance of a skill for a task or duty or a retranslation judgment would suffice, the fact is that a single job skill may be a prerequisite for performance in a variety of tasks, and any one task may require multiple skills of varying levels for effective performance. With a multiple assignment of tasks to job skills, the evaluation becomes considerably more difficult. In the present study, a sequence of statistical evaluations was conducted to examine, first, the reliability of the subject matter expert (SME) panel's association of tasks and job skills and, second, the factor structure of the task by job skill relationship. The results are discussed with reference to developing selection test specifications and test budgets.

Task-Completion Schedules: Determinants and Consequences for Performance

Abstract: This study investigated task characteristics and individual differences as predictors of task scheduling, i.e., the timeliness with which tasks are completed. It also assessed the impact of task scheduling on performance. Ninety-eight undergraduate management students were assigned six tasks as part of their requirements in an organizational behavior course. Students were free to select from multiple opportunities to complete each task throughout the semester. They completed difficult tasks later and boring tasks earlier. Students with high need for achievement completed tasks later. Successful prior performance and workload were associated with earlier task completion. Early task completion resulted in superior performance. Implications for work organizations are discussed.

Acquisition and Maintenance of Toothbrushing Skills by Students with Cerebral Palsy and Mental Retardation

Abstract: Although partial participation is used widely within educational programs for persons having severe mental or motor disabilities, there are few studies that target partial participation of a task rather than independent performance. One variation of partial participation requires that caregivers perform the task components that are not motorically feasible for a person, while teaching the student to perform the remaining components. In this study, three toothbrushing tasks (brushing teeth, rinsing, and wiping mouth) were analyzed into steps, some which the teacher performed and others that were taught to the student. The participants were 3 elementary-aged students with quadriplegic cerebral palsy and severe to profound mental retardation. Intervention procedures included time delay to fade physical prompts, reinforcement, and error correction. Instruction occurred daily in a self-contained public school classroom over a single school year, with follow-up probes conducted during the subsequent 2 years. A ...

Integrating task analysis into system design: Surveying designers' needs

Abstract: The authors are presently developing tools to enable software designers to carry out task analyses (TA). The tools will support a methodology comprising techniques for carrying out task analyses and will also take account of integrating the resulting TA information into system design. To support integration and to identify the requirements for TA tools, a group of designers were surveyed. The survey identified how the designers approach design, whether the designers believe TA would be of use to them and how, why and where TA might contribute to design. Finally the designers' views of the desired characteristics of TA tools was sought. This paper outlines the results of this small, detailed survey of what designers want, need and expect from TA tools.

Cognitive issues in the process of software development: review and reappraisal

Abstract: The current information age has brought about radical changes in workforce requirements just as did the industrial revolution of the 1800's With the presence of new technology, jobs are requiring less manual effort and becoming more Cognitiveoriented With this shift, new techniques in job design and task analysis are required One area which will greatly benefit from effective task analysis procedures is software development This paper attempts to lay a groundwork for developing such procedures by discussing important methodological issues, and examining current theories and research findings for their potential to identify the cognitive tasks of computer programming Based on the review, this paper suggests guidelines for development of a methodology suitable for knowledge elicitation of the programming process

Cognitive demands in automation.

Abstract: As the nature of a task changes with increasing automation, so do the cognitive demands on the human operator. The present study examines the implications of such changes on subjective workload and automation design issues. A variety of tasks (continuous flight control, discrete target acquisition, and decision making) was used to tax the different cognitive systems. Each task could be performed alone or in combination with other tasks. Performance and subjective workload ratings, obtained by three workload scales, were examined as a function of the level of automation. RESULTS demonstrated the usefulness of the multiple resource approach to task analysis. All three workload scales were found to be sensitive to the task demands. The Bedford scale was particularly impressive in distinguishing the different types of resources in demand. Both the multiple resource model's performance predictions and the subjective workload ratings were shown to be invaluable for decisions on how and what to automate. Language: en

Perspectives on Cognitive Task-Analysis: The State of the State of the Art

Abstract: This study presents a critical analysis of the state of current technologies, methods, and tools used in cognitive task-analysis. Methods for cognitive task-analysis, derived from methods used in cognitive science, are relatively new and have not been systematized. Current methodologies demand considerable time and expertise to conduct properly and often yield data which is difficult to readily translate into practical application. This paper examines these problems and proposes some directions for future research and training program development.

Simulation Fidelity as an Organizing Concept

Abstract: Although fidelity has typically referred to training devices, the fidelity concept can be used to facilitate and improve the design of total training systems. Based on the literature and an analysis of the issues surrounding fidelity, a working definition of fidelity and a strategy for acquiring the appropriate empirical information necessary for making fidelity requirements decisions is provided. The fidelity definition and strategic approach is basic to understanding the available research and guidance in later chapters. Task analysis is an important first step in accumulating information for designing training systems. A survey of task analysis techniques shows that no one approach is sufficient to provide this information. Fidelity is used as the organizing concept to determine how to conduct task analyses and use task analysis outputs to make training system design decisions.

Psychological evaluation and design of work tasks: two examples

Abstract: Practical experience with flexible production automation has provoked rising demands for human oriented job design. Prospective evaluation of work tasks based on status-quo analyses with the psychological instrument VERA, developed for the assessment of the available scope of action in fulfilling the task, has led to design proposals concerning technical and organizational aspects as well as questions of training and retraining. Procedure and results are shown by presenting two case studies dealing with a small flexible manufacturing system and a planned ‘production island’.

Modelling the user interaction methods imposed by designs

Abstract: We report our experience in the use of “approximate modelling” to compare segments of two existing interactive systems. This work is part of a project investigating how the theoretical framework of Kieras and Poison for modelling complexity in human-computer interaction might be adapted and used effectively in an industrial system development environment. The process of conducting the task analysis necessary for modelling led to qualitative insights well beyond the quantitative predictions provided by applying the theory. Though the methodology can provide a useful focus for task analysis in the design process, the quality of the resulting insights was highly dependent on the set of tasks selected for analysis.

Establishing Phonemic Segmentation in Moderately Retarded Children

Abstract: The present study evaluated a program for establishing phonemic segmentation in moderately retarded children. The study consisted of two experiments. Experiment 1 assessed whether the failure to isolate final phonemes of Consonant-Vowel-Consonant words (CVC) was due to the task requirements per se, or to inadequate understanding of the task demands. Experiment 2 evaluated the effects of a time-based stimulus manipulation procedure for teaching the students to isolate final consonants. The data revealed that (a) establishing adequate instructional control had no effect on the subjects' performance (Experiment 1), and (b) the training procedure was effective for all subjects (Experiment 2).

Human factors in electronic mail system design

Abstract: The current paper analyses how human factors aspects and system design aspects may co-operate in the design of a particular application, i.e. electronic mail systems. A review of research on the experience of electronic mail systems is presented, as well as a pilot study covering the experience of mail systems in different user groups. The users were found to differ mainly in terms of the tasks they performed and wanted to perform. It is therefore suggested that a task analysis is essential in system design. Current practice on task analysis is presented, which shows that a more detailed task analysis is needed to be useful. In order to achieve flexibility, the subtasks found should be designed in a modular way. Here the system designer will need different supports. To facilitate co-operation between end-users and system designers some kind of communication support is also suggested.