Cognitive Task Design Book Chapter

This chapter describes a framework for cognitive task design that focuses on social and communication issues. It is intended to complement the more traditional task oriented views. The chapter starts by describing a process model for cognitive task design then introduces cognitive and social pathologies: heuristics for analysing potential causes of failure in sociotechnical systems. This is followed by an introduction to generic tasks as reusable models for specifying human action, to which requirements for computer system task support can be attached, as well as the pathologies to warn the designer about potential failure points. A general model of discourse is described which is also associated with pathologies and generic requirements to guide the designer towards reusable knowledge at appropriate stages in the communication process. The discourse model is supplemented with patterns for specific types of communication such as Command and Control, proposals and liaison, etc. The next section proposes models for analysing power and trust in human-human and interorganisational relationships. Once again models are associated with pathologies and countermeasures. Use of the models is illustrated by analysis of Command and Control tasks in the combat sub-system of a Navy frigate. A scenario-based approach is taken to walk through the models using operation scenarios of a missile attack. The design implications for cognitive task support and communication are assessed, then two alternative designs for intelligent computerised radar and standard radar are compared using the generic models for analysing communication, perceptions of power and trust. The chapter concludes by reviewing the lessons learned for functional allocation, and future work in providing more effective decision support for operators in socio-technical systems.