Abstract
Two experiments examine how collaboration influences visual search performance. Working with a partner or on their own, participants reported whether a target was present or absent in briefly presented search displays. We compared the search performance of individuals working together (collaborative pairs) with the pooled responses of the individuals working alone (nominal pairs). Collaborative pairs were less likely than nominal pairs to correctly detect a target and they were less likely to make false alarms. Signal detection analyses revealed that collaborative pairs were more sensitive to the presence of the target and had a more conservative response bias than the nominal pairs. This pattern was observed even when the presence of another individual was matched across pairs. The results are discussed in the context of task-sharing, social loafing and current theories of visual search.
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This research was supported by a grant to D.S., a postdoctoral fellowship to M.G.R., and a graduate scholarship to K.A.M. from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
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Malcolmson, K.A., Reynolds, M.G. & Smilek, D. Collaboration during visual search. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 14, 704–709 (2007). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03196825
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03196825