Maximal benefits and possible detrimental effects of binary decision aids

Joachim Meyer, James K. Kuchar

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

7 Scopus citations

Abstract

Binary decision aids, such as alerts, are a simple and widely used form of automation. The formal analysis of a user's task performance with an aid sees the process as the combination of information from two detectors who both receive input about an event and evaluate it. The user's decisions are based on the output of the aid and on the information, the user obtains independently. We present a simple method for computing the maximal benefits a user can derive from a binary aid as a function of the user's and the aid's sensitivities. Combining the user and the aid often adds little to the performance the better detector could achieve alone. Also, if users assign non-optimal weights to the aid, performance may drop dramatically. Thus, the introduction of a valid aid can actually lower detection performance, compared to a more sensitive user working alone. Similarly, adding a user to a system with high sensitivity may lower its performance. System designers need to consider the potential adverse effects of introducing users or aids into systems.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 2021 IEEE International Conference on Human-Machine Systems, ICHMS 2021
EditorsAndreas Nurnberger, Giancarlo Fortino, Antonio Guerrieri, David Kaber, David Mendonca, Malte Schilling, Zhiwen Yu
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
ISBN (Electronic)9781665401708
DOIs
StatePublished - 8 Sep 2021
Externally publishedYes
Event2021 IEEE International Conference on Human-Machine Systems, ICHMS 2021 - Magdeburg, Germany
Duration: 8 Sep 202110 Sep 2021

Publication series

NameProceedings of the 2021 IEEE International Conference on Human-Machine Systems, ICHMS 2021

Conference

Conference2021 IEEE International Conference on Human-Machine Systems, ICHMS 2021
Country/TerritoryGermany
CityMagdeburg
Period8/09/2110/09/21

Keywords

  • alerts
  • decision aids
  • security
  • signal detection

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Computer Science Applications
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Media Technology
  • Control and Optimization

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