Experiment 1 Paper

Submitted By chichilana
Words: 1230
Pages: 5
Open Document
Running head: INVESTIGATING THE EFFECT OF TASK SWITCHING AND TASK REPEAT ON REACTION TIME AND ERROR RATES

Does Task Switching and Task Repeat effect reaction time and error rates?
[ANDREA FONVILLE]
Brooklyn College - CUNY
Summer 2015

Abstract
Increasing levels of stimuli in today’s society make multi-tasking a consistent reality. Task Switching (Monsell, 2003) proposes that reaction time will slow when people have top switch between different tasks. Performance is faster and accuracy is higher for task repeats than task switches. Task-switching cost is the term given to this occurrence. We used a simple task – switching experiment with results that were collected and analyzed via computer. Our results showed that showed that reaction times were significant white errors are not.

Does Task Switching and Task Repeat effect reaction time and error rates? Everyday my husband picks up our son from daycare, then he comes to get me and after that he drops me at school. We have had this set up since the 2015 spring semester started. We no longer have to check in with each other about who is going to do what and what time, this is just the routine. One day I asked my husband to come pick me up first because I wanted to speak to the day care provider. Before I knew it we were outside of Brooklyn College, without our son. We were so used to the routine that the disruption to the order messed us up.
In a 2003 paper, Stephen Monsell came to the conclusion that doing more than one task at a time takes a toll on productivity. . Although that shouldn't surprise anyone, the extent of the problem might come as a shock. Psychologists have found that the mind and brain were not designed for heavy-duty multitasking. Multitasking can take place when someone tries to perform two tasks simultaneously, switch from one task to another, or perform two or more tasks in rapid succession. To determine the costs of this kind of this, psychologists conduct task-switching experiments. By comparing how long it takes for people to get everything done, the psychologists can measure the cost in time for switching tasks. Although switch costs may be relatively small, sometimes just a few tenths of a second per switch, they can add up to large amounts when people switch repeatedly back and forth between tasks. This makes multitasking seem efficient on the surface but may actually take more time in the end and produce more errors. “Subjects' responses are substantially slower and, usually, more error-prone immediately after a task switch.” This ‘switch cost’ is reduced, but not eliminated, by an opportunity for preparation. Yet everyday life requires frequent shifts between cognitive tasks without prior preparation. In our experiment we gave the subjects two different tasks. On each trial the subject saw a number (1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9) and they had to judge whether the number is odd or even , or judge whether the number is smaller or larger than 5. We then measured their reaction time (RT) and accuracy on this task. Our hypothesis is that reaction times and error rates will be higher for task switching than task repeat.

Method
Participants
Twenty men and women participated in the study. Participants were evening students at Brooklyn College and varied in their occupation but all lived with in the five boroughs of New York City.
Materials and Design/ Procedure Participants used computers in room 3106 of James Hall at Brooklyn College. The program that was used by the 21 participants the in the study was METACARD. There were 100 total trials; 50% being odd/even trials and the other 50% being magnitude trials. During the study 50% of the time the task switched across trials, and the other 50% the task repeated across trials. The orders of these trials were fully randomized and the eight possible stimuli were the numbers 1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9. To respond to the tasks, participants were to use the keyboard. The response keys were: z=odd,
Show More

Related Documents: Experiment 1 Paper

INT Task3 A Essay

A. Complete a Project Design 1. Literature Review a. Physics of Paper Airplanes (www.exampleessays.com essay) This paper is about the things needed to make a paper airplane fly. There are many things that contribute to a planes ability to fly. Some such things are weight, velocity, lift, and drag. Weight is relevant because the weight is directly related to gravity. In order to make the plane fly better it stands to reason that it needs to be lighter so that the pull of gravity will not be as…

Words 1770 - Pages 8

Control Group Vs. Light-Colored Paper

responded with a happy statement. For the experiment groups, the results were not statistically significant, meaning the result might have been due to a chance since the difference is so small. Experimental group 1(light colored paper), the middle graph, resulted with 33 percent of sad emotions and 67 percent of happy emotions. The difference between the control group and the experimental group 1 is around 5 percent. The experimental group 2 (dark colored paper) resulted with 29 percent of sad emotions…

Words 526 - Pages 3

DNA Molecules Essay

Andrew Fowler Bio-111 4/21/14 Photosynthetic pigments Abstract: In the experiment that will follow, you will be learning that visible light is composed of different colors of light. You can hypothesize that leaves contain various pigments that absorb solar energy of these different colors. Introduction: This specific experiment was done to show what chromatography really does. It separates the pigments located in leaves, chromatography separates the molecules from each other based…

Words 436 - Pages 2

Biology For First Lab Essay

Pina Group partners: February 23, 2015 Lab Report: Termite pen preference: Paper Mate vs Sharpie Initial Observations: In the beginning of Lab 1, we were handed papers to draw a series of lines or shapes using a Paper Mate ballpoint pen or a Sharpie marker. Then, we were asked to place termites on top of the papers and observe their behavior. Our initial observations were that termites tend to move toward areas where Paper Mate ballpoint pen lines and shapes are more concentrated and move away from…

Words 1415 - Pages 6

Essay on Psych: Experiment and Interference

1 Running Head: INVESTIGATING THE IMPACT OF INTERFERENCE ON COLOR IDENTIFICATION USING THE STROOP EFFECT ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Investigating the Impact of Interference on Color Identification Using the Stroop Effect ! Alexis Fernander Candidate No. 0144 Seminole High School February 17, 2015 IB HL Psychology Mrs. Andrea Zara ! ! ! ! Word Count: 1433 ! INVESTIGATING THE IMPACT OF INTERFERENCE !2 CONTENTS Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………………3 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………

Words 2703 - Pages 11

Chemistry Unit 6 Lab Report

Two experiments that used the same unknown clear liquid were videoed and shown to students. Experiment 1: A teacher placed one drop of the unknown clear liquid onto a piece of pH paper. The pH paper turned red and indicated a pH of 2. Experiment 2: A teacher placed a beaker that contained a copper penny under a fume hood, which removes gases. As the fume hood ran, the teacher placed one drop of the unknown clear liquid on the copper penny. A blue liquid and a dark red gas formed quickly…

Words 219 - Pages 1

York Peppermint Pattie and Candy Essay

PURPOSE The Purpose of this experiment is to test whether or not cooling evaporation works on candy. This experiment will test this using a few simple household materials. Hypothesis If I cover the candy in a wet paper towel, then it will be cooler than the candy in a dry paper towel after 10 minutes under a lamp because the water on the wet paper towel will evaporate and cause evaporation cooling. Materials • Paper towel (3 sheets) • Scissors • Small bowl of room-temperature water •…

Words 635 - Pages 3

Essay about Observations of Chemical Changes

Chem 181 DL1 Professor Snyder Rebecca Hansen Observations of Chemical Changes 9/10/12 Experiment: To examine the reactions of some common chemicals contained in Consumer products and observe the macroscopic changes these chemicals undergo. Examining reactions of common chemicals contained in consumer products. In this lab, it will show the macroscopic changed the chemicals undergo. Objective: To observe some properties of chemical reactions and to associate chemical properties with household…

Words 1415 - Pages 6

Chromatography Stationary Phase Essay

and Rf number. The Rf number calculation is: Illustration of chromatography There are many different types of chromatography, such as: Paper Chromatography Stationary phase: Paper Mobile phase: Organic or aqueous solvent Paper chromatography is when it separates liquid samples with a liquid solvent and a paper strip. The paper is put into a container containing a small amount of the solvent in it, which is below the line with the spots with the top of the container covered. This…

Words 1313 - Pages 6

Enzyme Activity Lab Report

turn litmus paper red and are sour in tasted. Enzymes have their own optimal pH level to which they act (Bender, 2012). Many of the enzymes and proteins…

Words 1304 - Pages 6