The Effect of Secondary Task Timing and Difficulty on Driving-Related Performance and Modality Selection
Abstract
The authors conducted an experiment with 22 participants to investigate the effect of secondary task presentation style on driving-related performance. Participants performed a one dimensional (1-D) tracking task with a foot pedal while performing a secondary task (list monitoring) under 12 conditions using different presentation styles (sequential-audio; sequential-visual; simultaneous-visual), task complexity (the number of distractors), and time dependency (list length). In four additional conditions list length was changed based on performance, and modality was selectable. Primary task performance was better with audio presentation when the task was short and simple, but there was no advantage for audio presentation when the secondary task was longer and more complex. The authors also found that participants changed their modality preferences and selections depending on presentation style (sequential or simultaneous).
Authors: Sachi Mizobuchi, Mark Chignell, David Canella, Moshe Eizenman, Sayaka Yoshizu, Chihiro Sannomiya, Kazunari Nawa
Published in: 20th ITS World CongressITS Japan (2013)