Interruptions can Change the Perceived Relationship between Accuracy and Confidence

Abstract

Interruptions are disruptive in that they can decrease accuracy and the time taken to complete a task. In fields such as aviation and medicine, interruptions can not only reduce performance but lead to egregious outcomes. In such situations, confidence in whether a procedure has been completed may become a crucial aspect of judging where to resume a task. This paper demonstrates that interruptions both decrease accuracy and reduce confidence. More importantly, interruptions change the relationship between accuracy and confidence, reducing the likelihood that participants can determine where to resume appropriately.

Interruptions Reduce Performance across All Levels of Signal Detection When Estimations of Confidence are Highest

“…When participants rated themselves highly confident (responded with a "6"), accuracy rates were lower after an interruption (M = 91.75%) than when participants were not interrupted (M = 99.45%), F(1,26) = 9.00, MSE = 176, p < .05, η2 = .35 (Figure 3). These results support the Zish et al (2015) finding that interruptions change the relationship between memory and confidence, particularly at the highest bounds of confidence estimation. As such, we will focus the remainder of our analysis on trials where participants rated themselves highly confident.…”

“…When memory is manipulated however, it is assumed to have no effect on the confidence-memory relationship (Roediger & Desoto, 2012). In a study by Zish, Hassanzadeh, McMurry, and Trafton (2015) however, researchers showed that participants who rated themselves highly confident in a memory after they were interrupted were significantly less accurate than participants who were not interrupted but expressed the same level of confidence. This finding suggests that manipulating memory through a brief interruption can, in fact, change the relationship between memory and confidence.…”

“…When an incorrect memory is retrieved, an error occurs. Zish et al (2015) showed that interruptions changed the relationship between memory and confidence. The present study aimed to better understand the response behavior associated with this change.…”

The performance costs of interruption during visual search are determined by the type of search task

“…It may seem that the lack of an accuracy cost in the Williams and Drew study and in our Experiment 2 challenges the link between interruption and errors that past research has established (Altmann et al, 2014;Li et al, 2008;Monk et al, 2008;Trafton et al, 2003;Trafton et al, 2011;Zish et al, 2015). However, this relationship has primarily been established during procedural tasks with multiple steps (generally multiple goals) that must be held in WM.…”

“…A great deal of evidence indicates that interruptions are disruptive to primary task performance. The disruptive effects of interruption typically lead to an increase in the time it takes to complete a primary task and an increase in the amount of errors made during the primary task (Altmann et al, 2014;Li et al, 2008;Monk et al, 2008;Trafton et al, 2003Trafton et al, , 2011Zish et al, 2015). These accuracy and time costs are typically observed during computer-based procedural tasks with predefined steps that must be completed in a specific sequence.…”