Showing papers on "Task analysis published in 1994"

A rational analysis of the selection task as optimal data selection.

Abstract: Human reasoning in hypothesis-testing tasks like P. C. Wason's (1968) selection task has been depicted as prone to systematic biases. However, performance on this task has been assessed against a now outmoded falsificationist philosophy of science. Therefore, the experimental data is reassessed in the light of a Bayesian model of optimal data selection in inductive hypothesis testing. The model provides a rational analysis (J. R. Anderson, 1990) of the selection task that fits well with people's performance on both abstract and thematic versions of the task. The model suggests that reasoning in these tasks may be rational rather than subject to systematic bias.

Learning by watching: extracting reusable task knowledge from visual observation of human performance

Abstract: A novel task instruction method for future intelligent robots is presented, In our method, a robot learns reusable task plans by watching a human perform assembly tasks. Functional units and working algorithms for visual recognition and analysis of human action sequences are presented. The overall system is model based and integrated at the symbolic level. Temporal segmentation of a continuous task performance into meaningful units and identification of each operation is processed in real time by concurrent recognition processes under active attention control. Dependency among assembly operations in the recognized action sequence is analyzed, which results in a hierarchical task plan describing the higher level structure of the task. In another workspace with a different initial state, the system re-instantiates and executes the task plan to accomplish an equivalent goal. The effectiveness of our method is supported by experimental results with block assembly tasks. >

Input, Interaction, and Second Language Production.

Abstract: The role of conversational interactions in the development of a second language has been central in the recent second language acquisition literature. While a great deal is now known about the way in which nonnative speakers interact with native speakers and other nonnative speakers, little is known about the lasting effects of these interactions on a nonnative's linguistic development. This paper specifically investigates the relationship among input, interaction, and second language production. Through data from native–nonnative speaker interactions in a direction-giving task, we show that both modified input and interaction affect task performance. However, only interaction has an effect on subsequent task performance.

Abductive Inference : Computation, Philosophy, Technology

Abstract: Introduction 1. Conceptual analysis of abduction: what is abduction? 2. Knowledge-based systems and the science of AI: 3. Two RED systems 4. Generalizing the control strategy 5. More kinds of knowledge: TIPS and PATHEX/LIVER TIPS 6. Better task analysis, better strategy 7. Computational complexity of abduction 8. Diagnostic systems MDX2 and QUADS 9. Practical abduction 10. Perception and language understanding Appendices.

Transfer of Skill from a Computer Game Trainer to Flight

Abstract: An experimental study was conducted to test the transfer of skills from a complex computer game to the flight performance of cadets in the Israeli Air Force flight school. The context relevance of the game to flight was argued on the basis of a skill-oriented task analysis, using the framework provided by contemporary models of the human processing system. The influence of two embedded training strategies was compared, one focusing on the specific skills involved in performing the game, the other designed to improve the general ability of trainees to cope with the high processing and response demands of the flight task and teach better strategies of attention control. Efficient control and management of attention under high task load are argued to be skills that can improve with proper training and generalize to new situations. Flight performance scores of two groups of cadets who received 10 h of training in the computer game were compared with those of a matched group without game experience. Both game ...

Process enaction and tool integration via a task oriented paradigm

Abstract: A task manager for providing personal organization, project management, and process automation capabilities. The task manager maintains a hierarchical list of tasks for an individual. For each task, notes can be kept, priorities set, and progress tracked. Also, subsets of the task hierarchy can be shared. Every task in the task manager belongs to a class, and each class includes pre-defined automatic actions and manual actions. The pre-defined automatic actions are automatically executed by the task manager when the task is being worked on. The manual actions aid in task execution because the relevant operations (that is, the manual actions) are available when the task is being worked on. The task manager communicates with agents, tools, and process engines via a message system. The agents, tools, and process engine may receive task information from the task manager and may also remotely control the task manager.

Toward an assembly plan from observation. I. Task recognition with polyhedral objects

Abstract: The authors present the assembly-plan-from-observation (APO) method for robot programming. The APO method aims to build a system that has the capability of observing a human performing an assembly task, understanding the task based on the observation, and subsequently generating a robot program to achieve the same task. This paper focuses on the task recognition module (TRM), the main component of a complete APO system. The TRM recognizes object configurations before and after an assembly task, detects a configuration transition, and infers the assembly task that causes such a configuration transition. We assume that each assembly task aims to achieve a face contact relation between an object that has just been manipulated and the stationary environmental objects. We prepare abstract task models that associate transitions of face contact relations with assembly tasks that achieve such transitions. Next, we implement TRM in order to verify two issues: 1) that such a contact transition can be recovered from the output of the object recognizer; and 2) that given these relation transitions, it is possible to use the abstract task models to generate robot motion commands. >

An Objective Methodology for Task Analysis and Workload Assessment in Anesthesia Providers

Abstract: BackgroundAdministering anesthesia is a complex task in which either human or equipment failure can have disastrous consequences. An improved understanding of the nature of the anesthesiologist's job could provide a more rational basis for improvements in provider training as well as the design of a

Resolving therapeutic alliance ruptures: A task analytic investigation.

Abstract: Tansey, M. 1., & Burke, W. F. (1989). Understanding countertransference: From projective identification to empathy. Hillsdale, NJ: Analytic Press. Waldinger, R. J., & Gunderson, J. G. (1987). Effective psychotherapy with border­ line patients: Case studies. New York: Macmillan. Wallerstein, R. S. (1986). Forty-two lives in treatment: A study of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. New York: Guilford Press. Wallerstein, R. S. (1992). The future of psychotherapy. Bulletin of the Menninger

Adoption analysis: an additional tool for instructional developers

Abstract: Summary Instructional developers employing a systematic approach typically use various types of analysis tools such as a needs analysis or a task analysis. While instructional developers have shown that the careful application of analysis tools can result in effective instruction, they often fail to examine additional key factors which affect the eventual implementation of the instructional product. An analysis of the major factors with the potential to inhibit the adoption of an innovation can lead to the development of instructional products that are both effective and desirable to potential adopters. This paper considers the importance of an adoption analysis in the development of instruction, and outlines its systematic application. The intent is to provide designers with an additional tool for the development of successful instructional products.

Method for measuring the usability of a system and for task analysis and re-engineering

Abstract: A method for quantitatively and objectively measuring the usability of a system. The method provides quantitative measures for usability satisfaction, usability performance, and usability performance indicators. Usability satisfaction is measured by acquiring data from a system user population with respect to a set of critical factors that are identified for the system. Usability performance is measured by acquiring data for quantifying the statistical significance of the difference in the mean time for an Expert population to perform a task on a particular number of trials and the estimated mean time for a Novice population to perform the task on the same number of trials. The estimated mean time is calculated according to the Power Law of Practice. Usability Performance Indicators include Goal Achievement Indicators, Work Rate Usability Indicators, and Operability Indicators which are calculated according to one or more measurable parameters which include performance times, numbers of problems encountered, number of actions taken, time apportioned to problems, learning time, number of calls for assistance, and the number of unsolved problems. A task analysis and re-engineering methodology statistically compares quantitative usability measurements according to various classified subsets of the overall population. Such subsets or categories include population, critical factors, a critical factor, vital critical factors, other demographic groups, etc. Preferably, such subsets are set forth in a hierarchical manner such that the statistical comparison identifies a root task characteristic for re-engineering. Task analysis and re-engineering may also be performed according to activity on arrows, and activity in nodes techniques.

Robotic assembly operation teaching in a virtual environment

Abstract: A "teaching by showing" system using a graphic interface is proposed. This system provides: 1) a user interface with which an inexperienced operator can easily teach a task, and 2) a task execution system that can operate the task in a different environment. The operator shows an example of assembly task movements in the virtual environmental created in the computer. A finite automaton dependently defined task is used to interpret the movements as a sequence of high-level representations of operations. When the system is commanded to operate the learning task, the system observes the task environment, checks the geometrical feasibility of the task in the environment, and if necessary replans the sequence of operations so that the robot can complete the task. Then the system uses task-dependent interpretation rules to translate the sequence of operations into manipulator-level commands and executes the task by replicating the operator's movement in the virtual environment. >

Situation Awareness Information Requirements Analysis for En Route Air Traffic Control

Abstract: Situation awareness is a fundamental requirement for effective air traffic control forming the basis for controller decision making and performance. To develop a better understanding of the role of situation awareness in air traffic control, an analysis was performed to determine the specific situation awareness requirements for air traffic control. This was conducted as a goal-direct task analysis in which the major goals, subgoals, decisions and associated situation awareness requirements for En Route Air Traffic Control (ATC) were delineated based on elicitation from eight experienced Air Traffic Control Specialists. This effort was supported by available task analyses and video-tapes of simulated air traffic control tasks. A determination of the major situation awareness requirements for En Route ATC was developed from this analysis, providing a foundation for future system development which seeks to enhance controller situation awareness and provides a basis for the development of situation awareness...

Task analysis for error identification: A methodology for designing 'error tolerant' consumer products

Abstract: This paper presents an approach to the assessment of ‘intelligent’ consumer products. We assume that a primary reason for the difficulties people encounter in their use of intelligent consumer products is the lack of clear, consistent, and logical task sequences. The approach we have developed aims to illustrate the task sequences required for the purposeful use of ‘intelligent’ products, in order to indicate points at which errors, problems or confusions may occur. The approach combines two well proven methodologies (hierarchical task analysis and state space diagrams) to provide a description of human product interaction.

Measuring the Importance of Teamwork: The Reliability and Validity of Job/Task Analysis Indices for Team-Training Design

Abstract: Training interventions designed to improve coordination and communication in the cockpit increasingly emphasize the teaching of specific coordination skills. However, there is little guidance in the literature regarding the manner by which these skills should be selected. This investigation compared a variety of task- importance indices used previously with individual tasks in predicting the overall importance of team tasks. All of the indices demonstrated relatively poor reliability. Composite indices, including one newly derived index, demon- strated greater validity. The results are discussed in terms of implications for future research and for team-training design.

Position Location on Topographical Maps: Effects of Task Factors, Training, and Strategies

Abstract: There is little research on the ways people go about the very common task of extracting information from various forms of maps. In this study, we examined task factors, cognitive processes, and individual differences as determinants of performance differences when locating a position on a topographical map from a given position on the ground. Subjects for the study were 188 Australian Army personnel. Both spatial visualization ability and a visual learning style preference were found to be effective predictors of performance, whereas a form of verbal strategy training produced significantly improved performance. When no effective strategy was supplied, those subjects with a strong visual learning style preference performed dramatically better than their low-preference counterparts, suggesting that this form of processing preference may have a powerful impact on untrained performance. These results indicate that most subjects usually approach the task of map reading in a relatively passive way, without any...

Effects of Task Language Demands and Task Complexity on Computer-Mediated Work Groups:

Abstract: This study of group support systems examined the effects of the fit of task demands for numeric, visual, and conceptual language with the ability of different communication channels to transfer the...

Visual-action code processing by deaf and hearing children

Abstract: Groups of deaf and hearing children, matched on age and non-verbal reasoning ability, were tested on one of three versions of a short-term memory task involving the production of action responses to previously paired visual stimuli. One version of the task required free (i.e. unordered) recall of actions when visual stimuli were presented simultaneously (i.e. in a composite figure). In the other versions of the task, there was serial presentation of the same sets of stimuli followed either by free recall or serial recall of actions that had been paired with the stimuli. There was a significant interaction between hearing status and task version, with deaf children showing superior performance on the simultaneous presentation-free recall task and inferior performance on the serial presentation-serial recall task. The results were interpreted in terms of differences in coding orientation arising from different histories of communicative experience.

Computer system for monitoring a user's utilization pattern to determine useful tasks

Abstract: With the purpose of automatically and efficiently finding and selecting a collection of software functions truly useful for a user from a collection of software functions and of adequately and easily judging whether the software function selected by the user should be adopted or not, the computer system according to the present invention comprises task description holding means for holding a collection of task descriptions formally describing individual utilization patterns of various types of software functions, and filtering means for finding and selecting a task description describing a utilization pattern, not tried by the user in the past and regarded as useful for the user, from a collection of task descriptions held by said task description holding means and for disclosing it to the user. By adding the task description selected by the filtering means to a task model, said task model can be changed during task execution.

From users’ task knowledge to high‐level interface specification

Abstract: In the effort to define appropriate design and evaluation methods for interface usability, research work is being carried out to study the matching between users’ task characteristics and interface characteristics. This article proposes a methodology: following the task description (using Methode An‐alytique de Description; MAD), select task‐based data for defining informational constraints for the interface. The air traffic control task was described by applying MAD. Even though it was found to be suitable for capturing task‐based knowledge, the method showed the need for further refinements. This led to a more systematic way of selecting human factors rules as candidates for generic inference rules. These rules consist of premises describing specific configurations of users’ tasks (e.g., a particular informational need, a relationship between objectives, etc.) and conclusions that indicate specific requirements for the interface to conform to (e.g., a particular information display, a simultaneous acces...

Analytical modeling and experimental study of human workload in scheduling of advanced manufacturing systems

Abstract: Human supervisory control of advanced manufacturing systems is characterized by dynamic, discrete, and random decision-making tasks. With humans in the system control loop, there is a concern on cognitive task allocation based on human mental workload and performance. Traditional task analysis techniques based on observable actions are no longer appropriate. In this article, an analytical model was developed based on the conceptual model of human workload prediction proposed by Salvendy (Salvendy, 1993). This model is suggested to predict task load and human workload based on system engineering parameters: task arrival rate, task complexity, task uncertainty, and task performance requirement. This article also reports on an experimental study in which the sensitivity of the proposed engineering parameters on human workload and the validity of the analytical model were studied. A real time scheduling simulator of an advanced manufacturing system was implemented and configured with experiment data. The results support strongly the analytical model and further the conceptual model of human workload prediction. It is expected that the derived cognitive task analysis method and prediction models could be used for dynamic decision-making system design with random task arrivals.

Interactive communication between children: learning how to make language work in dialogue

Abstract: In this paper we investigate the development of interactive communication skills in 170 children aged seven to thirteen. Using a communication task that allows extended dialogues between pairs of young speakers, we are able to assess both the overall communicative success achieved by any pair; and from an analysis of the dialogues we can identify several interactive strategies that characterize older and more successful communicators. Successful communication involves the active involvement of both participants: asking and answering questions, volunteering information and responding sensitively to contributions from their partners. In contrast to the process of language acquisition, the development of these interactive skills takes place over an extended time period and subjects vary greatly in their ability to communicate effectively. For many analyses differences in the communicative success achieved by subjects differ more within than between age groups. For example, a substantial minority of our oldest subjects communicate no better than children six years younger.

DEVELOPMENT OF THE REFINED ADL ASSESSMENT SCALE for Patients With Alzheimer's and Related Disorders

Abstract: 1. Most activities of daily living (ADL) scales currently available for assessment of the older person's functional level were developed for the physically (not cognitively) impaired individual. 2. The Refined ADL Assessment Scale (RADL) measures three dimensions of functional ability: the components of a given task in sequential order, degree of assistance needed to carry out the task, and the amount of time needed to complete the task. 3. Each of the 14 tasks on the RADL is broken down into its simpler component parts, a process called task analysis. 4. The RADL may be used as a guide to providing assistance with the basic ADLs and to evaluate an individual's improvement with treatment.

Task-Centred Assessment in Language Learning: The Promise and the Challenge.

Abstract: It is argued that while task-centered assessment of second language learning has the strong support of teachers and learners, focuses on language as a tool rather than as an end in itself, and fosters learning, there remain some problems with its use. Further work must be done to develop assessment criteria that reflect current theories of language learning and use. Consistency in application of these criteria must then be assured. On a practical level, adoption of task-centered assessment will require that teachers and learners become accustomed to thinking o.7 language tasks not only as activities but also as indicators of progress and achievement, and learners will need to understand the criteria for evaluation of performance. In turn, this will require closer examination of the components of language tasks and a raising of learners' awareness of how language functions to achieve particular communicative purposes. In addition, reporting of task performance is complex, qualitative, and mull-idimensional rather than standardized and uniform. Contains 56 refereces. (MSE) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. vl co TASKCENTRED ASSESSMENT IN LANGUAGE LEARNING: oo THE PROMISE AND THE CHALLENGE

A proposed methodology for the prediction of mental workload, based on engineering system parameters

Abstract: In the design of engineering systems, mental workload is one of the most important factors in the allocation of cognitive tasks. Current methods of task allocation have criteria that are defined in only general terms and are thus not very useful in aiding detailed decision-making in system design. Whilst there are many quantitative criteria available to determine the physical space in human-machine interaction, system designers really require an explicit model and specific criteria for the following identification of the mental workload imposed by the system; prediction of both human and system performance; evaluation of the alternatives of system design; and the design of system components. It is argued that the available methods of workload or performance are either too domain-dependent to apply to the design of other systems, or subject-dependent and thus do not reflect the objective workload imposed by the system. The presented research adopts a new approach to cognitive task analysis in dyna...