Central and Peripheral Cues to Difficulty in a Dynamic Task

Objective: We used this experiment to determine the degree to which cues to difficulty are used to make judgments of difficulty (JODs). Background: Traditional approaches involve seeking to standardize the information people used to evaluate subjective workload; however, it is likely that conscious and unconscious cues underlie peoples' JODs. Method: We designed a video game task that tested the degree to which time-on-task, performance-based feedback, and central cues to difficulty informed JODs. These relationships were modeled along five continuous dimensions of difficulty. Results: Central cues most strongly contributed to JODs; judgments were supplemented by peripheral cues (performance-based feedback and time-on-task) even though these cues were not always valid. In addition, participants became more likely to rate the task as "easier" over time. Conclusion: Although central cues are strong predictors of task difficulty, people confuse task difficulty (central cues), effort allocation and skill (performance-based feedback), and proxy cues to difficulty (time) when making JODs. Application: Identifying the functional relationships between cues to difficulty and JODs will provide valuable insight regarding the information that people use to evaluate tasks and to make decisions.