Multichannel communication of an industrial task.

A specially constructed simulated assembly task was used to test the effectiveness of several multichannel communication combinations. The assembly task was a pegboard with a 4 <x> 4 matrix of 1/4 in. diameter, 3 in. long wooden dowels placed on 1 1/4 in. centres. Three types of wooden washers were made to fit on to the matrix of wooden pegs. The washers were assembled on to the pegs according to a set of instructions presented to the subject.
The three primary communication modes under study were the verbal mode, pictorial mode, and the written mode. Instructions for the verbal mode were presented via a prerecorded taped message. The pictorial instructions consisted of the presentation of a 35 mm coloured slide of the assembly task to be completed. The written instructions were also 35 mm slides, but of a typewritten message. The three primary modes were combined to form a series of multichannel messages, that is, information presented via two channels.
Two groups of 90 subjects each, 90 industrial subjects and 90 university students, performed the assembly task. The hypothesis under investigation was that cue summation provides an initial insight into the explanation of multichannel communication. The specific hypothesis was that when multichannel cues summate there will be facilitation in performance. Also, the effects of interference and redundancy were investigated. The primary results were that the cue summation principle does not seem to present adequate depth to form a basis for a theory of multichannel communication; however, in the absence of a basic theory the pictorial channel still seems to be the most efficient communication medium for industrial procedure instructions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]