The Effects of Working Memory during Search Tasks of Varying Complexity

We report on a study that evaluated the effects of working memory and task complexity on participants' perceptions, behaviors, and outcomes. Twenty-four participants performed two search tasks of varying complexity and completed a psychometric test to measure working memory ability. Our results found several important trends. First, task complexity had an effect on participants' perceptions about temporal demand and satisfaction with the time spent on the task. Second, participants with higher working memory exerted more search effort (e.g., issued more queries). Third, participants with higher working memory had better outcomes, particularly during more complex tasks. Finally, while participants with lower working memory exerted less effort (engaged in satisficing behaviors) and had weaker outcomes, working memory did not affect participants' post-task perceptions about workload and satisfaction. We discuss implications of our results for developing search tools to support users with varying levels of working memory.