Effects of data presentation and perceptual speed on speed and accuracy in table reading for inventory control

BACKGROUND: The increasing amount of available data in digital working environments raise considerable usability challenges. Beyond the trend for automation of such processes, strategic decisions still depend on humans in the loop who have to perceive, understand and process increasingly complex information and to make quick and correct decisions with considerable consequences for the effectiveness of the production process. OBJECTIVE: This work is concerned with a baseline experiment in which effects of data presentations and information complexity on speed and accuracy were studied taking table reading for inventory control as an example. METHODS: Experimentally, the information complexity (number of lines per table, number of digits, specificity of labels) as well as operators’ cognitive ability (perceptual speed) was examined in terms of decision speed and accuracy. In addition, learnability effects were assessed. RESULTS: Results show a significant effect of all factors on task performance. With increasing information complexity decision speed is considerably decreased. Operators’ perceptual speed modulates performance. Low perceptual speed in conjunction with insufficient data presentation results in significantly lower task performance. CONCLUSIONS: Usability and user-centered information displaying is of vital importance for efficient operators’ performance and to balance mental workload. The findings contribute to an understanding of the effects of single factors in combination for mental workload and may lead to better managerial decisions concerning the design of working conditions (e.g. by automating processes).