Representation of Fault‐Finding Problems and Development of Fault‐Finding Strategies

Abstract

This paper summarizes various studies which examine the representation of fault-finding problems and the development of fault-finding strategies. The main theoretical interest of this research was how the representation of problems in diagrams, maintenance manuals and other job aids determines the powerfulness and generality of any problem-solving strategies acquired. The studies find that improvements in problem representation tend to increase the efficiency of problem solving while improvements in accuracy are achieved by training. The effects of prolonged practice and individual differences are discussed besides the importance of product and process measures of fault finding.

Cognitive styles as an explanation of experts’ individual differences: A case study in computer-assisted troubleshooting diagnosis

“…In the case of diagnosis it is nevertheless possible to characterize diagnosis strategies by returning to the original study of Bruner et al (1956) on concept attainment. Similarly, Duncan (1985) suggested using the types of strategy adopted by Bruner et al to discriminate between cognitive styles in diagnosis tasks. In this way, successive scanning corresponds to serialist strategies and simultaneous scanning to holist strategies, as indicated in Section 2.2.2.…”

“…But there are many domains in which individual differences are not exclusively due to operator expertise. Examples include: diagnosis strategies (Duncan, 1985;Moran, 1986), design strategies (Visser and Hoc, 1990), industrial scheduling (Cowling, 2001), the use of assistance in anticipation (Sanderson, 1989), automation (Parasuraman and Riley, 1997), and ecological interface (Torenvliet et al, 2000). Yet, many authors suggest that these differences can be reduced by a training procedure (i.e.…”

Using a fine-grained comparative evaluation technique to understand and design software visualization tools

“…Second, the user will adopt strategies to guide which information should be accessed, to help make sense of it, and to check for consistency between the various sources and the users' own assumptions. Research has also looked at the kinds of fault-finding strategies used by process control operators, and how appropriate strategies can be trained and supported (Duncan, 1985). Third, within a process control setting the users are still prone to misunderstandings or false beliefs as to the functioning of the system (Duncan, 1987) sometimes with dire consequences (Kemeny, 1979).…”

Human-centered design (HCD) of a fault-finding application for mobile devices and its impact on the reduction of time in fault diagnosis in the manufacturing industry

“…While the vast majority of the research was conducted in the 1980s Henneman and Rouse, 1984;Duncan, 1985;Patrick et al, 1989), in the early years of the 21st century, few studies have been carried out in the research field of fault finding supported by technology. This dearth of studies can be attributed, among other things, to the fact that expert systems have lacked user acceptance for several reasons, such as an underlying deficiency in the cognitive coupling between the human and machine subsystems.…”

“…For the proceduralization of the testing sequence, training is important, as improvements in problem-solving accuracy may only be achieved through extended practice of sequences and in particular through the availability of information about the quality of moves during problem solving (Duncan, 1985). If training time is limited, the use and application of a fault-finding strategy can be enhanced by traditional and dynamic job aids (Kluge et al, 2013;Kluge, Greve, Borisov & Weyers, in press).…”