@article{ref1,
title="Costs in Searching for Two Targets: Dividing Search Across Target Types Could Improve Airport Security Screening",
journal="Applied cognitive psychology",
year="2007",
author="Menneer, Tamaryn and Barrett, Doug J. K. and Phillips, Luke and Donnelly, Nick and Cave, Kyle R.",
volume="21",
number="7",
pages="915-932",
abstract="The cost of searching for two visual targets simultaneously was compared against two separate single-target searches using exposure time and accuracy measures within a staircase procedure. Dual-target search for all stimuli (colour, shape and orientation) exhibited a loss of accuracy for one target. For orientation and shape, this dual-target cost in accuracy was extreme, with chance-level performance on one target. For colour, dual-target search exhibited an additional cost in search time, with search requiring a longer exposure than the summed time required for two single-target searches. An additional search-time cost was also found for orientation targets when irrelevant colour variation was added to the display. In conclusion, dual-target search for dissimilar targets is accompanied by an accuracy cost. Furthermore, colour variation, whether task-relevant or not, leads to an additional cost in processing speed. The results suggest that a divided-effort strategy would improve performance in search tasks such as X-ray baggage screening.<p />",
language="",
issn="0888-4080",
doi="10.1002/acp.1305",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/acp.1305"
}