Citation

Zhang J, Yang J, Wu C. Ergonomics 2015; 58(8): 1320-1336.

Affiliation

Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2015, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/00140139.2015.1009498

PMID

25677762

Abstract

In this paper, we propose a relational complexity network framework based on relational complexity metric and network theory to model controllers' workload in conflict detection and resolution. We suggest that, at the sector level, air traffic showing a centralized network pattern can provide cognitive benefits in visual search and resolution decision which will in turn result in lower workload. We found that the network centralization index can account for more variance in predicting perceived workload and task completion time in both a static conflict detection task (study 1) and a dynamic one (study 2) in addition to other aircraft-level and pair-level factors. This finding suggests that linear combination of aircraft-level or dyad-level information may not be adequate and the global-pattern-based index is necessary. Theoretical and practical implications of using this framework to improve future workload modelling and management are discussed.

Language: en