Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

In search of experience effects: How TSA officers differ from undergraduates on visual search tasks.

Mitroff, Stephen R; Biggs, Adam T; Cain, Matthew S; Darling, Elise F; Clark, Kait; Adamo, Stephen H; Dowd, Emma Wu

Authors

Stephen R Mitroff

Adam T Biggs

Matthew S Cain

Elise F Darling

Profile Image

Dr Kait Clark Kait.Clark@uwe.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer in Psychology (Cognitive and Neuro)

Stephen H Adamo

Emma Wu Dowd



Abstract

Visual search is a routine activity that people perform countless times each day. Search is also crucial for certain professions (e.g., airport security, radiology), and here we examine how the extensive practice gained through these careers alters search abilities. By comparing undergraduate participants from Duke University and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Raleigh-Durham Airport, we examine the effects of experience on visual search performance. In a laboratory we established at the airport, TSA officers completed search tasks and individual differences assessments during their normal work hours. Results from several search tasks demonstrated both similarities and differences in performance between the undergraduates and TSA officers; for example, the officers were more diligent searchers in a single-target search, but both populations showed performance decrements in multiple-target searches. By manipulating search parameters and experimental conditions (e.g., explicit instructions, time constraints), we reveal nuanced effects gained through visual search experience.

Citation

Mitroff, S. R., Biggs, A. T., Cain, M. S., Darling, E. F., Clark, K., Adamo, S. H., & Dowd, E. W. (2012, November). In search of experience effects: How TSA officers differ from undergraduates on visual search tasks. Paper presented at Psychonomic Society, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

Presentation Conference Type Conference Paper (unpublished)
Conference Name Psychonomic Society
Conference Location Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
Start Date Nov 1, 2012
End Date Nov 1, 2012
Acceptance Date Aug 1, 2012
Publication Date Nov 1, 2012
Peer Reviewed Not Peer Reviewed
Public URL https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/942229
Additional Information Title of Conference or Conference Proceedings : Psychonomic Society