The Role of Highlighting in Visual Search Through Maps

Abstract

An experiment was conducted in which participants performed a simulated vehicle dispatching task using a map display with two information domains. The intensity of one information domain was varied to examine the effect on processing the information in a cluttered display. Response times were recorded for questions either requiring focused attention on a particular information domain or divided attention between the two information domains. The results of the present experiments indicate that it is possible to ”declutter” a display without erasing any information. By ”lowlighting” one information domain and keeping the other domain at a fairly high intensity level, performance on tasks requiring divided attention is optimal, as is performance on tasks requiring focused attention to one domain exclusively. These results are also discussed in conjunction with a computational model of the effects of discriminability and salience on performance in a cluttered display with variable intensity codings used to visually segregate different domains of information.