Attention Sharing in the Performance of a Dynamic Dual Task

Abstract

In an investigation of attention sharing between two continuous tasks with independent input-output modes, 11 subjects were tested using a zero-order compensatory control task with three levels of difficulty (input bandwidth) for each subject. On half of the trials, the subjects simultaneously performed a secondary task of verbally shadowing a random auditory input. The results of an intensive time- and frequency-domain analysis of the data suggest and are consistent with a single-channel model of human performance.