Abstract
This paper reports on an experiment conducted to determine whether the manner in which information is portrayed affects ambulance planning and dispatch decision making performance. Based the outcomes of a series of cognitive task analysis, deficiencies in an actual ambulance status display used for dispatch management was identified. The display was then redesigned by applying cognitive engineering principles to achieve task-to-display compatibility. The new display was then evaluated and it was found to improve dispatch decision making performance by 40%.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allegiant Technologies Inc. (1996), SuperCard version 3.
Bennett, K. B. and Flach, J. M. (1992), “Graphical Displays: Implication for Divided Attention, Focused Attention and Problem Solving”, Human Factors 34 (5), 513–33.
Bennett, K. B., Toms, M. L. and Woods, D. D. (1993), “Emergent Features and Graphical Elements: Designing More Effective Configural Displays”, Human Factors 35 (1), 7197.
Benyon-Davies, P. (1995), “Information Systems ‘Failure’: The Case of the London Ambulance Service’s Computer Aided Despatch Project”, European Journal of Information Systems 4 (3), 171–84.
Carroll, J. M., Mack, R. L. and Kellog, W. A. (1988), Interface Metaphors and User Interface Design, in M. Helander (ed.), Handbook of Human—Computer Interaction, North-Holland, pp. 67–86.
Evans, M. (1995), “Inside Melbourne’s Emergency Response CAD System”, GIS User: The Australian Geographic Information Systems Applications Journal 14, 28–30.
Finkelstein, C. (1989), An Introduction to Information Engineering: From Strategic Planning to Information Systems, Addison—Wesley.
Gane, C. and Sarson, T (1979), Structured Systems Analysis: Tools and Techniques,second edition, Prentice—Hall.
Green, T. R. G. (1991), Describing Information Artifacts with Cognitive Dimensions and Structure Maps, in D. Diaper and N. Hammond (eds.), People and Computers VI: Usability Now! (Proceedings of HCI’91), Cambridge University Press, pp. 297–316.
Hair, Jr., J., Anderson, R. and Tatham, R. (1987), Multivariate Data Analysis,MacMillan.
Johnson-Laird, P. N. (1989), Mental Models, in M. Posner (ed.), Foundations of Cognitive Science, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, pp. 469–99.
Klein, G. A. (1989), Recognition-Primed Decisions, in W. Rouse (ed.), Advances in Man—Machine Systems Research, JAI Press, pp. 47–92.
Klein, G. A. (1990), Recognitional Decision Making: Information Requirements, in A. P. Sage (ed.), Concise Encyclopedia of Information Processing in Systems and Organizations, Pergamon Press, pp. 414–8.
Klein, G. A., Calderwood, R. and Macgregor, D. (1989), “Critical Decision Method for Eliciting Knowledge”, IEEE Transactions in Systems, Man and Cybernetics 19 (3), 462–72.
Klein, G., Kaempf, G., Wolf, S., Thordsen, M. and Miller, T. (1997), “Applying Decision Requirements to User-centered Design”, International Journal of Human—Computer Interaction 46 (1), 1–15.
Page, D., Williams, P. and Boyd, D. (1993), Report of the Inquiry into the London Ambulance Service, South West Thames Regional Health Authority.
Preece, J., Rogers, Y., Sharpe, H., Benyon, D., Holland, S. and Carey, T. (1994), Human—Computer Interaction, Addison—Wesley.
Rasmussen, J. (1986) Information Processing and Human—Machine Interaction: An Approach to Cognitive EngineeringNorth-Holland.
Rasmussen, J. and Vicente, K. (1989), “Coping with Human Errors through System Design: Implications for Ecological Interface Design”, International Journal of Man—Machine Studies 31 (5), 517–34.
Rasmussen, J., Pejtersen, A. M. and Goodstein, L. P. (1994), Cognitive Systems Engineering, John Wiley and Sons.
Staggers, N. (1993), “Mental Models: Concepts for Human—Computer Interaction Research”, International Journal of Man—Machine Studies 38 (4), 587–605.
Sutcliffe, A. (1997), “Task-related Information Analysis”, International Journal of Human—Computer Studies 47 (2), 223–57.
Tabachnick, B. G. and Fidell, L. S. (1996), Using Multivariate Statistics,third edition, Harper Collins.
Tullis, T. S. (1990), The Formatting of Alphanumeric Displays: A Review and Analysis, in M. Venturino (ed.), Selected Readings in Human Factors, The Human Factor Society, pp. 371–96.
Vicente, K. J. and Rasmussen, J. (1992), “Ecological Interface Design: Theoretical Foundations”, IEEE Transactions in Systems, Man and Cybernetics 22 (4), 589–605.
Wickens, C. D. (1992), Engineering Psychology and Human Performance,Harper Collins.
Wickens, C. D. (1993), “Cognitive Factors in Display Design”, Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences 83 (4), 179–201.
Wickens, C. D. and Carswell, C. M. (1995), “The Proximity Compatibility Principle: Its Psychological Foundation and Relevance to Display Design”, Human Factors 37 (3), 473–9.
Wickens, C., Kramer, A., Barnett, B., Carswell, M., Fracker, L., Goettl, B. and Harwood, K. (1985), Display/Cognitive Interface: The Effect of Information Integration Requirements on Display Formatting for C3 Displays, Technical Report EPL-853/AFHRL-RADC-85–1, Engineering-Psychology Research Laboratory, Aviation Research Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA.
Wong, W. B. L. (1997), Profiles of Selected Ambulance Dispatch Centres in New Zealand, Australia, and Singapore, Technical Report 97–2, Department of Information Science, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.
Wong, W. B. L., O’Hare, D. and Sallis, P. J. (1996a), Experimental Transformation of a Cognitive Schema into a Display Structure, in K. Lim, L. Herman, Y. Leung and J. Moyes (eds.), Proceedings of the First Asia Pacific Conference on Computer–Human Interaction APCHI’96, Human Factors of IT: Enhancing Productivity and Quality of Life, Information Technology Institute, pp. 455–68.
Wong, W. B. L., O’Hare, D. and Sallis, P. J. (1996b), A Goal-oriented Approach for Designing Decision Support Displays in Dynamic Environments, in J. Grundy and M. Apperley (eds.), Proceedings of OzCH1’96 The Sixth Australian Conference on Computer–Human Interaction, IEEE Computer Society Press, pp. 78–85.
Wong, W. B. L., Sallis, P. J. and O’Hare, D. (1995), Information Portrayal for Decision Support in Dynamic Intentional Process Environments, in H. Hasan and C. Nicastri (eds.), HCI: A Light into the Future — Proceedings of OzCH1’95, Ergonomics Society of Australia (Downer, ACT), pp. 43–8.
Wong, W. B. L., Sallis, P. J. and O’Hare, D. (1997), Eliciting Information Portrayal Requirements: Experiences with the Critical Decision Method, in H. Thimbleby, B. O’Conaill and P. Thomas (eds.), People and Computers XII (Proceedings of HCI’97), Springer-Verlag, pp. 397–415.
Woods, D. D. (1995), Toward a Theoretical Base for Representation Design in the Computer Medium: Ecological Perception and Aiding Human Cognition, in J. Flach, P. Hancock, J. Caird and K. Vicente (eds.), Global Perspectives on the Ecology of Human–Machine Systems, Vol. 1, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, pp. 157–88.
Yaman, E. (1995), “Woman’s Death Prompts Ambulance Service Changes”, The Australian p.4. 14th June 1995.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1998 Springer-Verlag London
About this paper
Cite this paper
Wong, W.B.L., O’Hare, D., Sallis, P.J. (1998). The Effect of Layout on Dispatch Planning and Decision Making. In: Johnson, H., Nigay, L., Roast, C. (eds) People and Computers XIII. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-3605-7_14
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-3605-7_14
Publisher Name: Springer, London
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-76261-4
Online ISBN: 978-1-4471-3605-7
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive