A Task-Analytic Approach to the Temporal and Spatial Placement of Product Warnings

Abstract

The effect of warning placement was investigated using a task-analytic approach to generate alternative warning locations. Within the context of a realistic task, 60 subjects used a consumer product that displayed a warning in one of four conditions. In two of the conditions the warnings were positioned so as to temporarily interfere with task performance. Dependent measures included attention to and behavioral compliance with the warning. The effect of warning placement was significant; the percentage of subjects who noticed the warning ranged from 0% to 93%, and the percentage who complied ranged from 0% to 53% across the four warning conditions. It was also found that warnings that temporarily interfered with task performance were significantly more effective than those that did not. The results are supportive of a task-analytic approach to warning design that pays particular attention to the cognitive aspects of task performance. The results also illustrate that, although alternative warning locations for a given product may satisfy commonly accepted placement criteria, they can differ dramatically in their effectiveness.