Multifractality in typing as a marker of fatigue

IF 5.1 2区计算机科学 Q1 COMPUTER SCIENCE, CYBERNETICS

International Journal of Human-Computer Studies Pub Date : 2025-08-16 DOI:10.1016/j.ijhcs.2025.103595

Dan Bennett, Anne Roudaut, Oussama Metatla

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Abstract

Multifractality is a property of biological signals that is informative about the effectiveness of behavioural coordination. Since fatigue is known to undermine the ability to coordinate behavioural resources, we hypothesise that multifractal signatures may function as effective markers of fatigue. To further this line of research we conduct a study to investigate the association between fatigue and multifractal signatures during typing. We observe that multifractality in keystroke timings is significantly lower after exposure to a mentally fatiguing task, and that multifractal properties correlate with the degree of self-reported fatigue. We discuss the implications of this research for the development of unobtrusive, low cost fatigue monitoring and interventions, noting that multifractal analysis requires only the capture of input behaviour for the task, and that multifractality has been observed in a range of task-directed behaviours, not only typing. This points to the potential to infer fatigue via existing commodity input hardware, in a range of tasks.

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作为疲劳标志的打字多重分形

多重分形是生物信号的一种特性，它为行为协调的有效性提供了信息。由于已知疲劳会破坏协调行为资源的能力，我们假设多重分形特征可能作为疲劳的有效标记。为了进一步研究这条线，我们进行了一项研究，以调查疲劳和多重分形特征之间的关联。我们观察到，在暴露于精神疲劳的任务后，击键时间的多重分形显著降低，多重分形特性与自我报告的疲劳程度相关。我们讨论了这项研究对开发不引人注目的低成本疲劳监测和干预措施的影响，并指出多重分形分析只需要捕获任务的输入行为，并且在一系列任务导向行为中观察到多重分形，而不仅仅是打字。这表明，在一系列任务中，有可能通过现有的商品输入硬件来推断疲劳。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

International Journal of Human-Computer Studies 工程技术-计算机：控制论

CiteScore

11.50

自引率

5.60%

发文量

108

审稿时长

3 months

期刊介绍： The International Journal of Human-Computer Studies publishes original research over the whole spectrum of work relevant to the theory and practice of innovative interactive systems. The journal is inherently interdisciplinary, covering research in computing, artificial intelligence, psychology, linguistics, communication, design, engineering, and social organization, which is relevant to the design, analysis, evaluation and application of innovative interactive systems. Papers at the boundaries of these disciplines are especially welcome, as it is our view that interdisciplinary approaches are needed for producing theoretical insights in this complex area and for effective deployment of innovative technologies in concrete user communities. Research areas relevant to the journal include, but are not limited to: • Innovative interaction techniques • Multimodal interaction • Speech interaction • Graphic interaction • Natural language interaction • Interaction in mobile and embedded systems • Interface design and evaluation methodologies • Design and evaluation of innovative interactive systems • User interface prototyping and management systems • Ubiquitous computing • Wearable computers • Pervasive computing • Affective computing • Empirical studies of user behaviour • Empirical studies of programming and software engineering • Computer supported cooperative work • Computer mediated communication • Virtual reality • Mixed and augmented Reality • Intelligent user interfaces • Presence ...