PERFORMANCE, WORKLOAD, AND FATIGUE CHANGES ASSOCIATED WITH AUTOMATION

The experiments discussed in this article addressed the influence of p art-task automation on operator performance, workload, and fatigue in a multitask environment. The overall task environment included trackin g, resource management, and multiple monitoring subtasks. Slower, more accurate monitoring and better resource management were observed when the tracking subtask was automated. Although lower workload was repor ted when tracking was automated, fatigue increased equally during peri ods of manual and automatic tracking. When participants could control workload by shifting between manual and automatic tracking, participan ts with 7 hr of training switched between automatic and manual trackin g. Their performance during optional automation periods was superior t o their performance in conditions in which only manual control or only automated control was available. The findings argue for the utility o f discretionary control of automated systems.