ATTENDO Method for the Assessment of Visual Attention Allocation in Two-dimensional Spaces

An experiment was carried out to develop and to validate a new assessment method for the allocation of visual attention in complex displays with two kinds of information: information about the environment of the system and additional information about the system status. Based on a secondary-task approach, this method specifically allows for an evaluation of possible consequences the design of complex displays may have on pilots’ or operators’ visual behavior, thus facilitating the identification of inappropriate designs that may lead to cognitive tunneling. A number of methods to evaluate the impact of design on pilots’ or operators’ visual attention are already in existence. They all apply the detection of surprising events. Experiments using these methods, however, require a large number of participants. The new method presented here helps overcome this problem and reduce the necessary effort. It is based on a secondary target-detection task with targets presented in different locations of the field of view. The experiment conducted to validate the new method was designed for the application of the method in two-dimensional displays (ATTENDO, which is Latin for I pay attention). The method is capable to reproduce effects of complex design on the allocation of attention. A significant better detection rate for centrally localized targets is achieved.