Publication statistics
Pub. period:1987-2012
Pub. count:60
Number of co-authors:81
Co-authors
Number of publications with 3 favourite co-authors:
Michael J. Kalsher:13Soyun Kim:6Stephen L. Young:5 Productive colleagues
Michael S. Wogalter's 3 most productive colleagues in number of publications:
Gary Perlman:33Michael J. Kalsher:20Kenneth R. Laugher..:20
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”
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Michael S. Wogalter
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Publications by Michael S. Wogalter (bibliography)
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Kim, Soyun and Wogalter, Michael S. (2012): Most Natural and Propane (LP) Gas Service Users Report Not Having Electronic Gas Detectors. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 2012 Annual Meeting 2012. pp. 666-670.
“Gas leaks in buildings can cause explosions and fire, which can result in serious burns, death and/or property damage. Since people may not smell the odorants added to natural and propane gas for a variety of reasons (e.g., being congested or asleep) electronic gas detectors could assist in detecting gas leaks. This study examined the extent to which electronic gas detectors are being used by persons reporting that they receive gas service. Three hundred seventy six participants were asked whether they have gas service at their residence and if so, what kind. Also they were asked what kinds of electronic gas detectors they had. Results showed that about half of the participants had gas service. While almost everyone reported having smoke detectors in their residence (whether or not they received gas service), less than half of the gas service users reported having a carbon monoxide detector. Very few gas service”
© All rights reserved Kim and Wogalter and/or Human Factors and Ergonomics Society
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Baldwin, Carryl L., Spence, Charles, Bliss, James P., Brill, J. Christopher, Wogalter, Michael S., Mayhorn, Christopher B. and Ferris, Thomas K. (2012): Multimodal Cueing: The Relative Benefits of the Auditory, Visual, and Tactile Channels in Complex Environments. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 2012 Annual Meeting 2012. pp. 1431-1435.
“Determining the most effective modality or combination of modalities for presenting time sensitive information to operators in complex environments is critical to effective display design. This panel of display design experts will briefly review the most important empirical research regarding the key issues to be considered including the temporal demands of the situation, the complexity of the information to be presented, and issues of information reliability and trust. Included in the discussion will be a focus on the relative benefits and potential costs of providing information in one modality versus another and under what conditions it may be preferable to use a multisensory display. Key issues to be discussed among panelists and audience members will be the implications of the existing knowledge for facilitating the design of alerts and warnings in complex environments such as aviation, driving, medicine and educational settings.”
© All rights reserved Baldwin et al. and/or Human Factors and Ergonomics Society
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Taylor, Jesseca R. I. and Wogalter, Michael S. (2012): Acceptability of Evacuation Instruction Fire Warnings. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 2012 Annual Meeting 2012. pp. 1753-1757.
“The present research examined a set of fire warning statements that could be used to facilitate evacuation of a multi-story building by manipulating the statements' wording and order. Participants (N = 105) evaluated how acceptable each of 13 statements would be in a fire emergency. Manipulated in the statements were two types of components: (a) 3 levels of egress immediacy: 'exit now,' 'exit immediately,' or none, and (b) 3 levels of egress directives: 'use stairs,' 'do not use elevator,' or none. Results showed that participants rated statements containing egress-immediacy and egress-directive components higher than statements without those components. There were no significant differences between the two egress immediacy components or between the two egress directives. An additional component order manipulation showed no effects. Implications and suggestions for future research on warning statement composition are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Taylor and Wogalter and/or Human Factors and Ergonomics Society
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Laughery, Kenneth R., Wogalter, Michael S., Nemire, Kenneth E., Vredenburgh, Alison G. and Kalsher, Michael J. (2011): What Do Human Factors/Ergonomics Experts Have to Tell Juries That They Don't Know -- But May Think They Know?. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 55th Annual Meeting 2011. pp. 604-607.
“Product liability and personal injury litigation frequently involves circumstances where an injury or property damage occurred as humans were interacting with products and/or environments while performing some task. Human Factors/Ergonomics (HFE) professionals are often involved as experts in these cases. The question addressed here is what benefits do juries derive from HFE expert testimony. In this session five panelists with experience as expert witnesses each describe a case that illustrates HFE testimony. Examples of issues addressed are sensory/perceptual limitations, attention capture and capacity, and induced errors. The presentations focus on issues where expert testimony would likely benefit jury understanding technical topics about which jurors may know little about or have misconceptions.”
© All rights reserved Laughery et al. and/or HFES
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Taylor, Jesseca R. I. and Wogalter, Michael S. (2011): Formatted Text Improves the Communication of Credit Card Information: Effects on Response Time. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 55th Annual Meeting 2011. pp. 1298-1302.
“Understanding basic credit card information can be important for maintaining secure personal finances. Although considerable human factors research has examined safety communications and warnings to avoid risk of personal injury, little human factors research has been conducted on communications associated with financial risk. This study explored whether human factors principles can be applied to credit card information intended for consumers. People's decision-making performance was examined with respect to credit card application information given in two formats: less versus more structured format, with the latter involving information chunking and spacing. Participants (N=40) compared 16 pairs of credit card applications with the task of selecting one among each pair that was the better financial deal (i.e., that reduced financial risk or saved more money). Eight pairs had less formatting (in prose style) and eight pairs had more structured formatting. The results showed that the credit card applications with the more structured format significantly reduced comparison (decision) times but had only minor effects on response accuracy. Implications for formatting financial risk disclosures are offered.”
© All rights reserved Taylor and Wogalter and/or HFES
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Taylor, Jesseca R. I. and Wogalter, Michael S. (2011): Effect of Text Format on Determining Tires' Date of Manufacture. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 55th Annual Meeting 2011. pp. 1318-1322.
“Previous research indicates that most consumers are unaware that older tires can deteriorate and lead to tread separation which could result in crashes. Even if they were to know about this hazard, the task of determining the date of manufacture (DOM) on tires is difficult. In the U.S., consumers must decode a 4 digit number at the end of a longer U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) identification number in small, black print embossed onto black sidewalls. Eighty-three participants (45 students and 38 adult non-students) were asked to decode 6 different date of manufacture (DOM) markings. Analyses showed that people have difficulty with determining dates in the current U.S. DOT format and that date formats resembling common U.S. date representations were more understandable to participants. Additionally, only half of the participants reported having knowledge of tire aging issues and few have looked at the DOT identification number before participating in this research. Discussed are implications for date formatting, followed by guidance on designing a more consumer-friendly DOM.”
© All rights reserved Taylor and Wogalter and/or HFES
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McDougald, Brannan R. and Wogalter, Michael S. (2011): Increased Comprehension of Warning Pictorials with Color Highlighting. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 55th Annual Meeting 2011. pp. 1769-1772.
“Although symbols or pictorials are increasingly being used to communicate warning information, people's comprehension of them is not guaranteed and sometimes can be quite low. The current study sought to determine whether adding colored highlighting to the relevant components of a pictorial benefits comprehension of the warning. There were three highlighting conditions: more relevant parts were highlighted, less relevant parts were highlighted, or no highlighting. Each participant was shown pictorials in each of the three highlighting conditions and asked to write a short description about what each pictorial communicates. The results showed that participants were more likely to correctly understand the intended conceptual meaning of pictorials when the most relevant parts were highlighted in comparison to the other two conditions. Highlighting less relevant parts led to poorer comprehension than no highlighting at all. Appropriately color highlighting relevant parts of complex pictorial symbols could be a useful method of enhancing comprehension.”
© All rights reserved McDougald and Wogalter and/or HFES
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Cowley, Jennifer A. and Wogalter, Michael S. (2011): Reading Pages of a Consumer Product Manual Text and Warnings: Effects of Format Salience and Visual Cues on Eye Movements. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 55th Annual Meeting 2011. pp. 1773-1777.
“This study evaluated whether high or low salience product manual warning formats resulted in different frequencies of both reading and warning recall accuracy. Both experimental conditions constituted an amalgamation of warning and product manual format features. The low salience condition was comprised of a capitalized signal word, paragraph prose-style warning text, warnings integrated with page content with low salience visual cues whereas the high salience condition included an icon, signal word panel, bulleted warning text, warnings placed separately at the page bottom with high salience visual cues. Eye movements were recorded while participants read pages from product manuals followed by a warning recall test. No significant difference in the number of warnings read was found but visual cues in the high salience condition shifted foveal vision to the warnings significantly more often than the cues in the low salience condition. Warning recall was higher in the low salience condition than in the high salience condition, probably because of the particular task and formatting used. Caveats and study implications are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Cowley and Wogalter and/or HFES
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Kim, Soyun, Wogalter, Michael S. and Taylor, Jesseca R. I. (2011): Safety Beliefs about Consumer Products. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 55th Annual Meeting 2011. pp. 1778-1782.
“This study examined people's safety perceptions concerning consumer products. Participants (n=129) were asked about their overall beliefs concerning safety of consumer products sold in the U.S. Beliefs regarding government and industry policies concerning safety were also collected. Results showed that participants gave ratings indicating believing that consumer products sold in the U.S. are safe. People tended to trust U.S. government's policies towards product safety. However, participants' responses indicate skepticism about manufacturers' motivations. Implications for HF/E research in risk communication are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Kim et al. and/or HFES
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Kim, Soyun, Wogalter, Michael S. and Mayhorn, Christopher B. (2010): Older and Younger Drivers Beliefs about Motor Vehicle Features to Benefit Their Safe Driving. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 54th Annual Meeting 2010. pp. 160-164.
“Because there are age-related perceptual, motor, and cognitive declines and because people are living longer, there has been increased concern about older drivers' ability to operate motor vehicles safely. This research examined older and younger adults' perceptions regarding a set of 28 motor vehicle features/aspects according to the extent to which they believed it may help their safe driving. Several features were judged as more important than others regarding safe driving. Although both age groups predominately gave similar evaluations, some features/aspects differed significantly between the two age groups. Older adults believed that vehicle door openings should be easier to get into and out of, preferred analog displays, and labels on the dashboard that were bigger and brighter, and held less strong beliefs that current vehicle controls and displays are easy to use than did younger adults. Implications and design recommendations are discussed. A list of vehicle features that are potentially beneficial to older drivers is presented.”
© All rights reserved Kim et al. and/or HFES
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Wogalter, Michael S., Israel, Jesseca R., Kim, Soyun, Morgan, Emily R., Coleman, Kwamoore M. and West, Julianne (2010): Hazard Connotation of Fire Safety Terms. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 54th Annual Meeting 2010. pp. 1837-1840.
“Knowledge about the level of danger associated with fire hazards is crucial for avoiding injury when dealing with hazardous materials. Participants (N=107) comprised of undergraduate students and non-student adults rated 12 one- and two-word phrases based on the extent of fire hazard conveyed. Evaluated were four root words (Inflammable, Combustible, Flammable, and Explosive) combined with three qualifiers (no qualifier, Very, and Extremely). Inflammable has the same meaning as Flammable but was rated as if it was of very low flammability, consistent with previous research. Explosive was rated higher than the other root words but was followed closely by Flammable and Combustible, which themselves did not differ. By including qualifiers, there was an increased hazard connotation over the root word alone, with the qualifier Extremely producing significantly higher ratings than with the qualifier Very. Even though Inflammable was rated erroneously as low in flammability when Very or Extremely were added, participants (particularly non-students) gave higher ratings of hazard than the root word alone. Analyses including demographic variables showed the ratings of the terms interacted with student status and age, which were mainly due to how the term Inflammable was rated. The evidence suggests that Explosive is a good term to express severe fire hazard, and the confusing term Inflammable should be avoided as much as possible. The results give some guidance on terminology in warnings that could be useful in matching connotations of hazard words with different danger levels.”
© All rights reserved Wogalter et al. and/or HFES
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Smith, Jeffrey J. and Wogalter, Michael S. (2010): Behavioral Compliance to In-Manual and On-Product Warnings. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 54th Annual Meeting 2010. pp. 1846-1850.
“Warnings have several purposes, including the communication of hazard information and promotion of safe behavior. The present study examined how compliance is affected by viewing duration of product manual warnings and the presence and content of on-product warnings for a computer memory installation task involving an electrostatic discharge hazard. Analyses showed that both the presence of an ANSI-style label and longer manual exposure increased behavioral compliance. The additive effect of exposure time and label presence and content suggest that both previous exposure to warning information and effective on-product warning design benefit compliance.”
© All rights reserved Smith and Wogalter and/or HFES
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Kim, Soyun, Mayhorn, Christopher B. and Wogalter, Michael S. (2010): Use of Information Sources Referenced in and Attitudes about Televised DTC Prescription Drug Advertisements. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 54th Annual Meeting 2010. pp. 1880-1884.
“Unlike most advertising, direct-to-consumer (DTC) prescription drug advertising on television frequently contains warnings. Because of the brevity of the warning message, a follow-up source with more detailed information is given. This research examined the reported likelihood of using several follow-up sources as well as their beliefs about the completeness/accuracy and ease of access of those sources. Also examined were various other beliefs and attitudes associated with DTC prescription drug television advertising. Participants reported that they would more likely to use certain follow-up sources such as the Internet more than other sources such as an advertisement in a particular magazine and believed that certain sources provide more complete/accurate and more accessible information than other sources. The results indicate that the Internet is a growing information source that people use to find out more about prescription drugs viewed in advertisements. Participants' responses indicate skepticism about the goals and content of DTC prescription drug advertising, although the responses also indicate that they believe that there are potential benefits of such advertising. Implications for research in risk communication and warnings are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Kim et al. and/or HFES
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Kim, Soyun and Wogalter, Michael S. (2009): Habituation, Dishabituation, and Recovery Effects in Visual Warnings. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 53rd Annual Meeting 2009. pp. 1612-1616.
“Decrement of visual attention to repeatedly exposed warning labels and signs has been discussed in the warning literature without much empirical research support. The present research examined whether habituation, dishabituation, and recovery of habituation occur to visually presented warnings. Participants (N=72) were presented to a long sequence of repeated visual warnings (40 warnings presented 8 times = 320 initial trials) in a particular format (ANSI or OSHA type formats), followed by 5 warnings manipulated either in the same or different format. Five more warnings in same format as in the initial trials were presented to end the sequence. Measured were participants' ratings of perceived alertness to each warning. Findings showed a decrease in ratings from beginning to end of the initial 320 trials, indicative of habituation. Dishabituation was observed with higher ratings when the warning format changed. Evidence of habituation recovery of lowered ratings was observed upon return to the previously habituated (initial trials) format after a set of different formatted warnings. Implications for formalized standards and guidelines, which recommend an unchanging, relatively constant format, are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Kim and Wogalter and/or their publisher
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Wogalter, Michael S. and Dietrich, David A. (1995): Enhancing Label Readability for Over-the-Counter Pharmaceuticals by Elderly Consumers. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 39th Annual Meeting 1995. pp. 143-147.
“The most common information source for over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceuticals is the container label. Most OTC labels contain so much text that the print must be substantially reduced in size to fit the available surface area. As a consequence, people with vision problems, such as the elderly, have difficulty reading the print. Some OTC drugs are being marketed in containers with easy-open caps to facilitate access (but at the same time, reduce child resistance). The increased surface area afforded by the cap design could be used to enhance the labeling. An experiment compared elders' (mean age of 75) evaluations to different label variants. Experimental bottles contained additional labeling attached to the cap that reiterated and extended some of the most important warnings and instructions. The additional labeling of the experimental bottles had print that was larger than the existing back label, and among them, differed in background color. These bottles were compared to two control conditions (one with the original store-bought label and one with the back and side labels removed). Participants ranked the containers on six dimensions (e.g., noticeability of the label, willingness to read the label, willingness to purchase the product). Results showed that the participants preferred the bottles with the additional cap labeling and most preferred the one with the distinctive fluorescent green color. Implications of these results are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Wogalter and Dietrich and/or Human Factors Society
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Kalsher, Michael J., Wogalter, Michael S., Brewster, Blair M. and Spunar, Marilyn E. (1995): Hazard Level Perceptions of Current and Proposed Warning Sign and Label Panels. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 39th Annual Meeting 1995. pp. 351-355.
“A growing number of studies have investigated factors associated with various measures of warning effectiveness, including noticeability, comprehension, and most importantly, compliance. Some research has begun to examine the components comprising signs and labels (e.g., signal words, color). However, there has been virtually no research on people's perceptions of sign/label configurations that are currently found on warnings. The present study evaluates the warning styles that are specified in ANSI (1991) Z535.2 and Z535.4 standards, as well as a set of proposed styles. The results confirmed several specifications in current standards (e.g., the signal word DANGER was perceived as more hazardous than the other currently-specified signal words), whereas other specifications were not fully confirmed (e.g., the WARNING configuration as indicating higher hazard than the CAUTION configuration). Some newly developed warning styles (e.g., using the signal word DEADLY and a skull icon) show promise for better signaling highly hazardous conditions.”
© All rights reserved Kalsher et al. and/or Human Factors Society
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Howe, Julie E. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1995): On Making Legal Documents Understandable: Objective and Subjective Measures. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 39th Annual Meeting 1995. pp. 430-434.
“Citizens are often asked to sign a variety of legal documents such as contracts, monetary agreements, and consent forms, but the adequacy of how well informed average citizens become when they sign such documents is unclear. A recent survey indicated that respondents signed a variety of legal documents that they did not fully read or understand (Howe and Wogalter, 1994). Participants in that survey also identified characteristics of legal documents that hinder their understanding and offered suggestions for improving understandability. In the current study, these characteristics and suggestions were used to create two different consent forms: a conventional "legalistic" consent form and an improved consent form. These were compared with each other and with a third, one-line, consent form (a control). Understandability was assessed using an objective comprehension test and measures of participants' subjective perceptions of understandability. Consistent with the hypotheses, objective comprehension and participant's subjective understanding was significantly enhanced by the improved form relative to the conventional form. Comprehension in the control condition was significantly lower than either of the other two consent forms conditions. In addition, even though comprehension was poor with the conventional legalistic consent form, all but one person receiving that form signed it, agreeing to participate in an activity that was described as having some risk of explosion and burn injury (jump starting a dead battery with booster cables). There was also a tendency for more participants with the improved form than the conventional form to take advantage of a stated option of participating in a less risky activity (a card sorting task). The importance of understanding legal documents as well as the implications for additional work in this domain are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Howe and Wogalter and/or Human Factors Society
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Laughery, Kenneth R., Lovvoll, David R. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1995): Allocation of Responsibility for Product Safety. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 39th Annual Meeting 1995. pp. 435-439.
“Three studies were carried out to explore how people allocate responsibility for safety during product use. In Study 1 29 consumer products were named and subjects apportioned safety responsibility to the manufacturer, the retailer, the user, and a potentially relevant organization not in the stream of commerce (e.g., FDA, CPSC, Underwriters Laboratories). The mean percent responsibility”
© All rights reserved Laughery et al. and/or Human Factors Society
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Young, Stephen L., Wogalter, Michael S., Laughery, Kenneth R., Magurno, Amy and Lovvoll, David (1995): Relative Order and Space Allocation of Message Components in Hazard Warning Signs. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 39th Annual Meeting 1995. pp. 969-973.
“Standards, guidelines, and research findings suggest that safety signs should generally contain four components: signal word, hazard, consequence and instruction statements. The purpose of this research is to determine the relative importance of different safety sign components. Two experiments examined this issue by having subjects construct a set of warning signs from component sections. In Experiment 1, participants manipulated component sections and assembled them onto a metal plate (of limited size). In Experiment 2, subjects worked with a technician to produce the signs on a computer. The relative importance of the individual components was determined by examining (1) use vs. omission rates, (2) size, and (3) order. The results show that few subjects used all the components in their warnings. Participants enlarged certain statements (Experiment 1) or added pictorials (Experiment 2) which necessitated the omission of other, presumably less-important, elements. The order of sign components was consistent only for signal words, which were placed generally at the top. The results suggest that, for certain hazards, the overall quality of information conveyed by a sign might be improved by eliminating or making smaller less important information, while simultaneously increasing the size of more relevant verbal information (or adding pictorials).”
© All rights reserved Young et al. and/or Human Factors Society
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Wogalter, Michael S., Magurno, Amy B., Carter, Ann W., Swindell, Julie A., Vigilante, William J. and Daurity, Jason G. (1995): Hazard Associations of Warning Header Components. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 39th Annual Meeting 1995. pp. 979-983.
“There has been relatively little warnings research directed at systematically examining the component features comprising existing warning signs as specified in standards (ANSI Z535) and guidelines (e.g., FMC, 1985; Westinghouse, 1981). This research examines several elemental features found in real-world warning signs to determine their individual as well as their combined effects on people's hazard perceptions. Various colors, signal words, shapes and configurations -- both individually and in combination-comprising existing warning headers as well as newly developed constituents were evaluated in a series of rating and ranking tasks. The results confirmed several existing published recommendations (e.g., the color red is perceived to connote more hazard than other solid colors), but also showed instances where people's perceptions differed from those assumed in design standards and guidelines. Some newly-developed header configurations (e.g., having a skull icon to the right of the signal world) show promise as alternatives for signaling hazardous conditions.”
© All rights reserved Wogalter et al. and/or Human Factors Society
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Silver, N. Clayton, Wogalter, Michael S., Brewster, Blair M., Glover, Barbara L., Murray, La Tondra A., Tillotson, Cheryl A. and Temple, Tallah L. (1995): Comprehension and Perceived Quality of Warning Pictorials. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 39th Annual Meeting 1995. pp. 1057-1061.
“The present study assessed the comprehensibility and quality of warning pictorials in the presence and absence of explicit context. Context was provided by a photograph and a verbal description of an environmental scene in which the pictorial might appear. A total of 248 individuals performed a comprehension test on a randomly-assigned pictorial from each of three referent categories (Keep Out, Electrical Shock, and Do Not Dig). Following this task, 185 participants were shown five pictorials (four others plus the one they had seen) associated with each of the three referent categories and then rated and ranked them on their quality to convey the referent message effectively. Results indicated that the context manipulation enhanced comprehension for pictorials two out of three referent categories. Confidence intervals indicated that comprehension levels of all the Electrical Shock symbols would fall within the ranges specified by ISO's 67% and ANSI's 85% comprehension criteria. Three of the Do Not Dig pictorials and none of the Keep Out pictorials fell within the acceptable ISO and ANSI comprehension criteria. Statistically significant average point biserial correlations were obtained between the comprehension and quality scores for each referent category. Implications for warning pictorial test and design are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Silver et al. and/or Human Factors Society
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Dolan, Nancy J., Wogalter, Michael S., Shapiro, Ronald G., Brown, Megan L., Wilson, Jody L. S., White, Royce M., Sugg, Mark J., B., A Tina M., Sayer, A, Adams, Roxann E. P. and Hood, Teresa L. (1995): Games for Explaining Human Factors: Come and Participate!. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 39th Annual Meeting 1995. .
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Perlman, Gary, Green, Georgia K. and Wogalter, Michael S. (eds.) (1995): Human Factors Perspectives on Human-Computer Interaction: Selections from the Human Factors & Ergonomics Society Annual Meetings 1983-1994. Santa Monica, California, Human Factors and Ergonomics Society
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Wogalter, Michael S. and Brelsford, John W. (1994): Incidental Exposure to Rotating Warnings on Alcoholic Beverage Labels. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. pp. 374-378.
“No previous research has been published specifically aimed at determining the effectiveness of rotating warnings (as is required in the government-mandated cigarette warnings). This issue has become relevant because decisions may be made with respect to rotating warnings in print and broadcast alcoholic beverage advertisements, and perhaps for labels and ads for other products as well. The present study used 80 participants in a controlled incidental-exposure laboratory experiment. The effect of the current government warning label for alcoholic beverages was compared to a 5-warning and a 10-warning rotating scheme as well as a no-warning control condition. The study was disguised as marketing research where participants were incidentally exposed to the warnings while evaluating a set of alcoholic beverage labels. The dependent measure was performance on a test of alcohol facts and hazards. Findings show that the present single government warning label is inadequate compared to multiple (rotated) warnings. The 10-warning condition produced higher test scores than either the single government warning or no-warning conditions. Overall, the 5-warning condition produced intermediate levels of knowledge. Also, four exposures produced greater specific warning content knowledge than either two or no exposures. The results suggest that rotating multiple warnings are a better means of communicating facts and hazards than a single repeated warning of limited content. Policy implications are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Wogalter and Brelsford and/or Human Factors Society
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Kalsher, Michael J., Wogalter, Michael S., Pucci, Shari and Racicot, Bernadette M. (1994): Enchancing the Perceived Readability of Pharmaceutical Container Labels and Warnings: The Use of Alternative Designs and Pictorials. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. pp. 384-388.
“The appropriate use of pharmaceuticals, as well as their hazards, are not commonly known to most people. In fact, the only information available to consumers is usually the material found on the product label. Unfortunately, for some consumers this method of communicating instructions and risks may be ineffective, and potentially dangerous. People may have difficulty with the labels because the print on the label is too small for them to read. Two alternative (tag and fold-out) designs were developed to increase the available surface area for information printed on a fictitious prescription drug label. The alternative label designs were compared to a standard control label. The presence versus the absence of pictorials visually depicting several instructions and warnings was also examined. Participants rated the labels on ease of reading the labels, likelihood of noticing the warnings, likelihood of reading the warnings, preference for each of the labels, and likelihood that they would recommend each label for use by a friend or family member. The results showed that participants (n = 84) preferred the alternative label designs, especially the tag labels, and those with illustrative pictorials. Implications of these results and recommendations for future research in this area are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Kalsher et al. and/or Human Factors Society
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Wogalter, Michael S. and Kalsher, Michael J. (1994): Product Label List Format: Effects of Item Arrangement and Completeness on Comparison Time and Accuracy. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. pp. 389-393.
“This research examined the influence of two factors on the ease of gaining information from item lists: the order and completeness of the items displayed. Food nutrition labels served as the vehicle to test the manipulated lists on comparison time and accuracy performance measures. Four booklets, each containing 12 pairs of nutrient labels, were constructed in which the listed items were: (1) either arranged in a standard order or in a random order, and (2) either had a complete set of nutrients (including nutrients not present in the product) or a partial set of nutrients (excluding nutrients with zero or near-zero amounts in the product). Thirty-two participants were instructed to assume that their physician has told them to increase their intake of three specific nutrients and decrease their intake of three other nutrients. One label of each pair contained a higher level of one nutrient that should be increased or a lower level of one nutrient that should be decreased. Participants were to determine which of the two labels would be better given the prescribed diet. Time and accuracy measures were collected. Participants made significantly faster judgments for nutrients arranged in a standard order than for nutrients arranged in a random order. For all conditions, the error rate was low. An interaction indicated that labels with a complete set of nutrients in a standard order produced fewer errors than (a) labels in a standard order with some nutrients missing or (b) labels with a complete set of nutrients in a random order. Implications of making lists compatible with expectations are described.”
© All rights reserved Wogalter and Kalsher and/or Human Factors Society
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Howe, Julie E. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1994): The Understandability of Legal Documents: Are They Adequate?. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. pp. 438-442.
“Citizens are frequently asked to make commitments by signing contracts and legal documents that frequently contain phraseology and jargon (sometimes called legalese) that highly-educated citizens often do not understand. In recent years, human factors professionals have become intimately concerned with the design of product-related documentation and safety communications (e.g., warnings), and through research have offered ways to improve these materials. However, there is apparently no human factors research on the design and evaluation of legal contracts and other similar documents. The purpose of the present research was to begin to assess some of the factors related to people's reading and understanding of legal documents. Study 1 examined the types of legal documents that people sign, how often they sign them, how carefully they read them, and whether they understand them. Ninety-two individuals were asked to complete a survey addressing these issues. While it was reported that the contracts were read moderately carefully and were understood moderately well, the levels were not as high as one would expect given the importance of the documents and the education level of the participants in this study (who had, on average, approximately two years of college). Also, 96% of the sample believed that legal documents could be improved and provided specific suggestions on how this might be accomplished. In Study 2, 32 participants rated the set of potential improvements to legal documents that had been suggested by Study 1's participants. The results confirmed the first study's pattern of findings. Implications for average citizens' lack of comprehension of contracts and other legal documents are discussed with a specific focus on the role research might have on their improvement.”
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Wogalter, Michael S. and Baneth, Robin C. (1994): Availability of Owners' Manuals for 'Second-Hand' Consumer Products. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. pp. 447-450.
“This research concerns the availability of owner's manuals for second-hand (used or resold) consumer products. One hundred people were approached in a shopping center mall and asked various consumer-oriented questions including: (a) whether they have ever purchased new and/or used 20 common consumer products (e.g., car, computer, power lawn mower, bicycle, etc.), and if so, whether those products came with an owner's manual or an instruction sheet when purchased; (b) whether they had personally sold any of the products, and if so, whether they transferred the owner's manual to the new owner; and (c) how much they would pay for the owner's manuals for each product assuming they had to purchase it separately. Also, they gave 9-point ratings on the products' familiarity, hazard level, and difficulty of use. The survey included several other questions including asking participants how they store their manuals, and for them to estimate the search time to find them. The findings show that while owner's manuals for some used-products are frequently transferred to new owners, others are not. In the latter cases, lack of owner's manual availability means that certain kinds of important safety information may not reach consumers -- despite consumers wanting the information and the fact that manufacturers' included it with the product at its first sale. The results also indicate that people want access to owner's manuals for second-hand product. Participants agreed that including the owner's manual would help the sale of used products and that they were willing to pay extra for one (particularly for difficult-to-use products). These results suggest that manufacturers ought to address ways that would make it more likely that consumers retain the owner's manual and transfer it to subsequent owners at later resale, and provide consumers with convenient ways that they can request a replacement copy should the original manual become inaccessible.”
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Lovvoll, David R., Laughery, Kenneth R., Wogalter, Michael S. and Terry, Stephanie A. (1994): Risk Perception Issues in the Use of Motorized Shoulder Belt/Manual Lap Belt Systems. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. pp. 456-460.
“Two experiments employed surveys to address seat belt experience and use as well as perceptions of risk associated with various seat belt configurations. In Experiment 1, a questionnaire was administered to two samples: 104 students at the University of Houston and 162 volunteers at a shopping mall in Raleigh, North Carolina. Of primary interest was the use of manual lap belts in motorized shoulder belt systems and reasons for their use or non use. Results showed that compared to manual three point belts, usage rates for manual lap belts in the motorized system were lower. Forgetting and traveling a short distance were frequency cited as reasons for not fastening belts. Estimates of fatalities in a head-on collision scenario indicated lap belts and shoulder belts were perceived to provide equal protection. In Experiment 2, 147 students at the University of Houston completed a follow-up questionnaire. Usage patterns were virtually the same as in Experiment 1. Estimates of likelihood to use lap belts after viewing six different warnings about seat belt use showed warnings containing more explicit hazard information were likely to lead to higher use rates.”
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Brelsford, John W., Wogalter, Michael S., Begley, Paul B., Scancorelli, Lori F., Williams, Jay H. and Terry, Stephanie A. (1994): Comprehension and Compliance to Elevator Service Signs. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. p. 974.
“This research examined comprehension of and compliance to four different elevator service signs. The purpose of the signs was to dissuade people from tying up the elevator when they are only going up one floor or down two floors. Three of the four signs were described by Chapanis (1964): an original sign and two others that he offered as possibly being better. The fourth sign was an enhanced version that used human factors principals derived from research studies on the topic since the Chapanis (1964) article. The enhancements involved the use of color, signal word, signal icon, pictorials, and concise, clear wording. In Experiment 1, participants rated the understandability of each sign and their willingness to obey the signs' instructions. Both questions showed the same pattern of results. The original sign was rated lowest and the enhanced sign was rated highest; the two other signs received intermediate ratings. In Experiment 2, the signs were placed on each floor of six buildings in conspicuous locations near the elevator call buttons. People's use of the elevators during the posting of each sign as well as during five no-sign (control) periods was measured. The experimenter rode the elevators and counted the total number of passengers using the elevators as well as the number who rode up only one floor or down less than two floors (noncompliers). Results showed that only the new enhanced sign had an effect on compliance compared to the other three signs and the control conditions. These results suggest that the sign principles developed from research in recent years are likely to assist in promoting comprehension and behavioral change.”
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Wogalter, Michael S., Kalsher, Michael J., Glover, Barbara L., Magurno, Amy B., Fisher, Jake T. and Dunham, Daniel L. (1994): Increasing the Correct Connection of Automobile Battery Jumper Cables with an Enhanced Warning. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. p. 979.
“Every year people are injured while improperly "jump starting" automobiles using battery booster cables. A common scenario leading to injury occurs when people attach both negative leads to the battery terminals instead of properly grounding the negative lead of the "dead" battery to that vehicle's engine block. An incorrect configuration can cause the "dead" battery to explode, discharging strong sulfuric acid. Two experiments examined the effectiveness of pictorial-based tag warnings illustrating the proper connection of jumper cables and the hazards associated with improper connection. Experiment 1 used pictures of cars with open hoods. When the warning was present, participants were significantly more likely to draw the correct connection sequence than when the warning was absent. Experiment 2 used actual booster cables to connect two realistic appearing mock batteries in adjacently parked vehicles. When an enhanced warning was present on the cables, participants were significantly more likely to accurately connect the batteries compared to an unenhanced (a current manufacturer's) warning or no warning. The present research shows that well-designed pictorial warnings can modify inaccurate beliefs and behavior concerning proper jumper cable connection.”
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Jarrard, Stephen W. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1994): Learning Complex Visual Stimuli: Effects of Spaced Presentation and Rehearsal on Aircraft Recognition. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 38th Annual Meeting 1994. pp. 1188-1192.
“This study examined the effects of three presentation methods (one massed and two distributed) and two visual rehearsal conditions (rehearsal allowed and not allowed) on recognition of complex visual stimuli. The stimuli, photographs of military aircraft, were tested using a different view than the three views given at study. Recognition performance was measured by hit, false alarm, and discrimination indices to assess differences among the presentation and rehearsal conditions. A substantial effect of rehearsal was found. Allowing intervals for, and encouraging, post-exposure imaging increased hit and discrimination scores compared to conditions where post-exposure imaging was prevented. No significant effect of presentation method or interaction with rehearsal was noted. Exploratory analyses suggested that a study strategy involving attention to individual features to be associated with higher recognition performance. Empirical, theoretical, and applied implications of the study are discussed, and suggestions for further research are described.”
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Laughery, Kenneth R., Wogalter, Michael S. and Young, Stephen L. (eds.) (1994): Human factors perspectives on warnings : selections from Human Factors and Ergonomics Society annual meetings, 1980-1993. Human Factors and Ergonomics Society
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Kalsher, Michael J., Rodocker, Angela J., Racicot, Bernadette M. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1993): Promoting Recycling Behavior in Office Environments. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 37th Annual Meeting 1993. pp. 484-488.
“Rapid declines in available landfill space have sparked specific interest in recycling programs focused on increasing the quantity of materials recycled. This focus on quantity, rather than quality, has produced a glut of paper which currently comprises nearly 40% of all solid waste produced each year in the U.S. In recent years, recycling facilities have become increasingly selective with regard to the paper materials they accept because contaminants (e.g., food, gummy labels, carbon paper, staples, styrofoam products) reduce the recyclability of the collected material. In this study, a "low-tech" sort separation intervention was used to decrease the amount of contaminants in recyclable paper collected from four campus office buildings. A multiple baseline design across settings was used to evaluate the intervention, that consisted of an educational pamphlet, interactive group discussion, attention-getting posters, and environmental arrangement of color-coded paper collection bins to increase ease of use and convenience. Following the intervention, the percentage of correctly sorted paper increased from 25.5%”
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Silver, N. Clayton, Gammella, Dana S., Barlow, Amy S. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1993): Connoted Strength of Signal Words by Elderly and Non-Native English Speakers. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 37th Annual Meeting 1993. pp. 516-519.
“A number of recent studies have examined the connoted strength of signal words used in sign and product label warnings. These words, such as DANGER, WARNING, and CAUTION, are intended to differentiate various levels of hazard (high to low, respectively). Until recently, most studies have only used college students to evaluate signal words. Other populations who are at least equal to or possess greater risk of injury have not been studied. The main purpose of the present research was to determine whether other populations of persons, namely the elderly and non-native English speakers, derive similar meanings (i.e., connoted levels of hazard) from the signal words as have been shown in previous work for college students, as well as, for a sample of grade-school children tested in Silver and Wogalter (1991). A sample of 98 elderly persons and 135 non-native English speakers rated 43 potential signal words on how careful they would be after seeing each term. The results showed that the rank ordering of the words was consistent across both groups and this order corresponded with the ratings from earlier-studied populations. Moreover, there was a significant negative linear relationship between the number of words the non-native English speakers left blank and ratings of understandability by college students in previous research. The forensic implications and practical relevance of these results for hazard communication to diverse populations are discussed.”
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Wogalter, Michael S., Malpass, Roy S. and Burger, Michele A. (1993): How Police Officers Construct Lineups: A National Survey. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 37th Annual Meeting 1993. pp. 640-644.
“In criminal investigations, considerable weight is given to eyewitness identification evidence. In some cases, like assault and robbery, this evidence may be the only kind available. Over the last two decades, considerable research has been aimed at the factors that cause identification errors. However, virtually all of this work has involved undergraduates and naive lay persons as subjects. There is little known on what police officers do in the course of their work. The present research investigates the procedures that police investigators employ when they construct live and photographic lineups. Surveys were sent to 500 U.S. police jurisdictions along with a cover letter requesting that it be completed by the person most experienced in constructing lineups; 220 were returned. On average, the respondents had 12 years experience as police officers and had constructed a mean of 329 lineups (89 live, 240 photographic). For many items, the results were consistent with those of previous laboratory research. For example, the police officers reported giving more attention to upper face features (e.g., hair) in selecting non-suspect lineup members (foils) which is consistent with research on feature saliency. However, other results indicate that the police use different procedures than those recommended in the research literature. For example, the police officers report using similarity as the major basis for selecting the nonsuspects (foils), whereas, research shows that selection of foils based exclusively on suspect appearance can produce biased lineups. In addition, there is considerable research showing that sequential lineups are more fair than simultaneous lineups, yet only 40% of the police investigators reported having used the sequential technique. These and other findings provide direction and implications for research opportunities. It is concluded that systematic investigation of actual police procedures is a more direct approach of studying ways to decrease identification errors.”
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Duffy, Richard R., Kalsher, Michael J. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1993): The Effectiveness of an Interactive Warning in a Realistic Product-Use Situation. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 37th Annual Meeting 1993. pp. 935-939.
“Warning labels are widely used to convey information about the safe use of products. In an attempt to design better warnings, researchers are exploring factors that influence their effectiveness. One design factor that appears promising is an interactive label that requires manipulation by the consumer using the product. In the present research, the effectiveness of two interactive warning labels (with and without a color component) were compared to a standard label in the context of a realistic product-use task. Additionally, task load was manipulated (low vs. higher). The results showed that the interactive labels were noticed, recalled and complied to more often than the standard on-product label. No effect of increasing task load and adding color to the interactive label was observed. The results indicate that the interactive label is a viable means of facilitating warning effectiveness.”
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Wogalter, Michael S., Racicot, Bernadette M., Kalsher, Michael J. and Simpson, S. Noel (1993): Behavioral Compliance with Personalized Warning Signs and the Role of Perceived Relevance. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 37th Annual Meeting 1993. pp. 950-954.
“Recent research has shown that compliance to a posted warning sign is much lower than the same warning located within a set of task instructions, even when the sign is highly visible. One possible reason for this finding is that participants' believe the sign to be less relevant to the task and to themselves than the within-instructions warning. One purpose of the present research was to examine whether a personalized sign (with the participant's name) is more effective than a more conventional impersonal sign (with the signal word CAUTION). A second purpose was to examine the influence of a dynamic display compared to a static display. A sign composed of programmable light-emitting diodes (LEDs) presented the warning message using special effects (apparent motion) or it was displayed continuously. A third purpose was to examine whether various sign placements in a cluttered laboratory environment influences compliance. The wearing of protective equipment by participants as directed by the warning was the measure of behavioral compliance in a chemistry laboratory task. More participants wore the protective equipment when a warning was present than when it was absent. The personalized sign increased compliance compared to the impersonal sign. No effect of dynamic presentation was found, and the only effect among sign placements was found for perceived accuracy. The effect of personalization is explained in terms of the special alerting feature of one's own name and increased perceived relevance that results when the message is directed to them. Implications for flexible control of personalized warning messages using available technology are discussed.”
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Kalsher, Michael J., Wogalter, Michael S. and Gilbert, Carolyn M. (1992): Connoted Quantity of Food-Label Modifier Terms. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 36th Annual Meeting 1992. pp. 528-532.
“This descriptive study examined a set of modifier terms (e.g., reduced, enriched) that might be used to indicate amounts of substances in food products. In the context of a mock shopping task, participants were asked to complete a survey that assessed the implied meaning of each of 55 terms, 28 connoting varying degrees of decrease and 27 connoting increase. For each set of modifier terms, participants estimated the amount that each term implied and the likelihood that they would purchase a food product with the term paired with substances that they were advised to consume or avoid. The results showed that the terms used in this study connoted a broad range of quantities. Several alternative terms not currently used or under consideration by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration may be effective in helping consumers make finer distinctions among products and, presumably, wiser purchase decisions. The results also suggest that caution be exercised when selecting modifier terms since some terms are less consistent in their connoted meaning than others. Thus, instead of arbitrarily selecting modifier terms and then initiating expensive, large-scale nutrition training programs to train the public, it is recommended that a limited number of modifier terms based on their extant meaning to a broad segment of the population should be used. Future research on developing an optimal set of modifier terms is discussed.”
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Wogalter, Michael S., Jarrard, Stephen W. and Simpson, S. Noel (1992): Effects of Warning Signal Words on Consumer-Product Hazard Perceptions. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 36th Annual Meeting 1992. pp. 935-939.
“This experiment investigated the influence of warning signal words and a signal icon on perceptions of hazard for consumer products. Under the pretext of a marketing research study, 90 high school and college students rated product labels on variables such as product familiarity, frequency of use, and perceived hazard. Sixteen labels from actual household products were used and stored on a computer. Nine of the products labels were used to carry the nine signal word conditions. Five conditions presented the signal words NOTE, CAUTION, WARNING, DANGER, and LETHAL together with a brief warning message. In two other conditions a signal icon (exclamation point surrounded by a triangle) was presented together with the terms DANGER and LETHAL. The final two conditions were controls, one had a warning message but had no signal word, and the other had no warning message or signal word. Seven product labels were "fillers" that never contained a warning. Results showed that the presence of a signal word increased perceived hazard compared to its absence. Between extreme terms (e.g., NOTE and DANGER), significant differences were noted, but not between terms usually recommended in warning design guidelines. The presence of the signal icon had no significant effect on hazard perception. Implications of the results and the value of the research methodology for future warnings' investigations are discussed.”
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Young, Stephen L., Wogalter, Michael S. and Brelsford, Jr. John W. (1992): Relative Contribution of Likelihood and Severity of Injury to Risk Perceptions. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 36th Annual Meeting 1992. pp. 1014-1018.
“The degree of caution that people are willing to take for a given product is largely determined by their perceptions of the risk associated with that product. Research suggests that risk perceptions are determined by the objective likelihood or probability of encountering potential hazards (Slovic, Fischhoff, and Lichtenstein, 1979). However, there is also research suggesting that objective likelihood plays little or no role in determining risk perceptions. Rather, risk is determined by the subjective dimension of the hazard or in other words, the severity of injury (Wogalter, Desaulniers and Brelsford, 1986, 1987). The present research examined aspects of these two studies in an attempt to reconcile the observed differences. Subjects evaluated either the Wogalter et al. (1986, 1987) products or the Slovic et al. (1979) items on eight rating questions. Results demonstrated that severity of injury was the foremost predictor of perceived risk for the Wogalter products, but that likelihood of injury was primarily responsible for ratings of risk for the Slovic items. The two lists differed substantially on all the dimensions evaluated, suggesting that the content of the lists is responsible for the contrary findings. In a second study, subjects rated another set of generic consumer products. These ratings showed a pattern of results similar to the Wogalter products. Overall, this research: (a) explains the basis for conflicting results in the risk perception literature, and (b) demonstrates that severity of injury, and not likelihood of injury, is the primary determinant of people's perceptions of risk for common consumer products.”
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Wogalter, Michael S., Kalsher, Michael J. and Racicot, Bernadette M. (1992): The Influence of Location and Pictorials on Behavioral Compliance to Warnings. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 36th Annual Meeting 1992. pp. 1029-1033.
“The efficacy of two warning-related factors to produce cautionary behavior in a chemistry laboratory task was examined. Experiment 1 compared the effects of a posted-sign warning and a within-instruction warning on behavioral compliance. The results showed that a warning embedded in a set of task instructions produced significantly greater compliance (the wearing of protective gear) than a similar, larger warning posted as a sign nearby. Experiment 2 reexamined the effect of location and also examined the influence of the presence versus absence of pictorials. The results of Experiment 2 confirmed the location effect of Experiment 1. No influence of pictorials was noted, although there was a nonsignificant increase in compliance when pictorials were added to the within-instruction warning. The results indicate that warning placement is important for eliciting behavioral compliance to safety messages. Explanations such as differences in field of view and perceived relevance are discussed.”
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Jarrard, Stephen W. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1992): Recognition of Non-Studied Visual Depictions of Aircraft: Improvement by Distributed Presentation. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 36th Annual Meeting 1992. pp. 1316-1320.
“This experiment examined the effects of three methods of presentation, one massed and two distributed, on recognition of complex visual stimuli (military aircraft). Also examined was whether the effects of these methods differ as a function of the view at test (same or different from the studied view). In the massed presentation, aircraft were exposed once for eight seconds with each exposure separated by a blank interval of 20 seconds. In the successive distributed condition, each target aircraft was presented four times in a row for two seconds with each exposure separated by blank intervals of five seconds. In the random distributed condition, the aircraft were presented for the same on-off time intervals as the successive distributed condition, but the sequence of the study list was random. Results showed that recognition performance, as assessed by measures of hits, false alarms, and discrimination accuracy was significantly better when the same view was given at study and at test versus a different view. While presentation method did not produce an effect by itself, it did interact with test view. With a different view at test, distributed presentation showed a small, but significant, improvement in recognition performance compared to massed presentation. These results are discussed with regard to the high likelihood that most real-word visual stimuli are seen in a different views at subsequent exposures. Distributed presentation may be a useful way to prepare individuals for a different view at a later time.”
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Kalsher, Michael J., Clarke, Steven W. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1991): Posted Warning Placard: Effects on College Students Knowledge of Alcohol Facts and Hazards. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 35th Annual Meeting 1991. pp. 456-460.
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Wogalter, Michael S. (1991): Effects of Post-Exposure Description and Imaging on Subsequent Face Recognition Performance. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 35th Annual Meeting 1991. pp. 575-579.
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Silver, N. Clayton and Wogalter, Michael S. (1991): Strength and Understanding of Signal Words by Elementary and Middle School Students. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 35th Annual Meeting 1991. pp. 590-594.
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Wogalter, Michael S., Rashid, Raheel, Clarke, Steven W. and Kalsher, Michael J. (1991): Evaluating the Behavioral Effectiveness of a Multi-Modal Voice Warning Sign in a Visually Cluttered Environment. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 35th Annual Meeting 1991. pp. 718-722.
“This research examined the effects of a multi-modal warning sign on compliance behavior. Participants followed a set of printed instructions to perform a chemistry task that involved measuring and mixing disguised (nonhazardous) chemicals. Whether participants wore protective equipment as directed by the warning was measured. The environment around the sign was either visually cluttered or uncluttered. In some conditions, pictorials, a voice warning, and/or a flashing strobe light were added. The results showed that compliance was significantly greater when the warning was presented in an uncluttered environment compared to a cluttered environment. The results also showed that the presence of a voice warning produced a strong and reliable increase in compliance compared to conditions without a voice warning. No statistically reliable effects of pictorials or strobe were found though the results did show a trend of greater compliance when they were present. In addition, compliance was positively related to memory of the warning, perception of hazard, and reported carefulness. The results call attention to the importance of the context in which a warning is placed, and the potential benefits of voice warnings.”
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Wogalter, Michael S., Slot, Laura J. Van't and Kalsher, Michael J. (1991): Bias in Police Lineups and its Reduction by an Alternative Construction Procedure. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 35th Annual Meeting 1991. pp. 1561-1565.
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Young, Stephen L., Brelsford, John W. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1990): Judgments of Hazard, Risk, and Danger: Do They Differ?. In: D., Woods, and E., Roth, (eds.) Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 34th Annual Meeting 1990, Santa Monica, USA. pp. 503-507.
“There were three purposes of the present research. The first was to test whether some of the discrepancies found in the hazard and risk perception literature were due to differences between the connotations of the terms hazard and risk. The second purpose was to examine the relationship between willingness to read warnings and generalized cautious intent, as well as other relevant variables suggested by past literature. The third purpose was to examine the relation between objective measures of injury (e.g., frequencies of hospital emergency room admissions) and people's subjective perceptions. The results showed that the expressions of hazardous, risky, dangerous and hazardous-to-use connote the some meaning to lay participants. Strong intercorrelations were found between overall unsafeness (a composite of the four hazard-risk expressions), injury severity, cautious intent, and willingness to read warnings. While injury likelihood played a small part in the prediction of willingness to read warnings, the results indicated that overall unsafeness (and severity of injury) play the foremost role in people's judgments of whether to read warnings and to act cautiously. No relationship was observed between objective measures of injury frequency and people's subjective perceptions of injury likelihood which is taken as a further indication that people do not readily use injury likelihood in their judgments of product safety. The implications are two-fold. First, the results suggest that lay persons do not interpret the term risk in the same way as do experts. These results suggest that other terminology and language may be needed to express probability to lay persons. Second, the results suggest that designers of warnings and educational materials should focus their attention to ways that appropriately communication how badly a person can get hurt, rather than (or to a lesser extent) the likelihood of getting hurt.”
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Wogalter, Michael S. and Barlow, Todd (1990): Injury Severity and Likelihood in Warnings. In: D., Woods, and E., Roth, (eds.) Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 34th Annual Meeting 1990, Santa Monica, USA. pp. 580-583.
“Two experiments examined the influence of injury likelihood and severity in warnings on product hazard perceptions (Experiment 1) and behavioral compliance (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, participants were given a set of front panel labels for 10 household consumer products. Warnings on the labels were constructed by manipulating the likelihood (low vs. high) and severity (low vs. high) of injury. Labels lacking a warning served as controls. Participants rated the product labels under the guise of a marketing study in which most of the questions concerned product familiarity, cost, and label attractiveness. Only one question was of interest which probed the level of hazard posed by the products. The results showed that (1) the presence of a warning increased the products' judged level of hazard, (2) products with high severity warnings were viewed to be more hazardous than products with low severity warnings, and (3) likelihood of injury in the warnings had no influence on hazard perceptions. Experiment 2 used a chemistry laboratory demonstration task to test the effects of injury likelihood and severity in a warning on compliance behavior (i.e., wearing gloves as directed by the warning). Greater compliance was shown when warned of a more severe injury, but only when the injury was of lower likelihood. In general, both experiments showed that injury severity influences warning effectiveness to a greater extent than injury likelihood. The results suggest that to inform people of a hazard and to motivate them to comply with a directed behavior, product warnings should communicate the severity of consequences.”
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Wogalter, Michael S. and Frei, Richard L. (1990): Social Influence and Preference of Direct-Manipulation and Keyboard-Command Computer Interfaces. In: D., Woods, and E., Roth, (eds.) Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 34th Annual Meeting 1990, Santa Monica, USA. pp. 907-911.
“Direct-manipulation and command-based computer interfaces have each found their own following among microcomputer users. This study explores some of the differences between these two groups of computer users. Participants completed a questionnaire that requested their microcomputer usage and ownership, usage and preference of various command methods and pointing devices, the microcomputers most of their friends use, the microcomputer they would be most willing to purchase next, and their preference for several models of microcomputers. The results showed that participants preferred pointing devices (e.g., mouse) compared to other input methods (e.g., arrow keys) regardless of their prior usage. They tended to use an interface similar to that of their friends' and they reported greater willingness to purchase a computer with an interface similar to the one they most often use. In general, the results suggest that social influence and interface familiarity are important factors in determining which interface people choose to use. Being surrounded by others who use a similar computer interface eases the burden (in terms of effort, time, and expense) of obtaining relevant computer information. An implication of this work is that these variables may hinder approval and acceptance of improved computer interface designs offered by human factors specialists.”
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Leonard, David C., Ponsi, Kathryn A., Silver, N. Clayton and Wogalter, Michael S. (1989): Pest-Control Products: Reading Warnings and Purchasing Intentions. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 33rd Annual Meeting 1989. pp. 436-440.
“This research is part of a large study examining people's perceptions of household pest-control products. Described in this report are the variables associated with peoples' willingness to read warnings on these products and the variables associated with likelihood to purchase. Two subject samples, comprised of 70 undergraduates and 20 adults, examined 22 pest-control products and responded to a questionnaire assessing perceptions of the products, the packaging, and the warnings. Results showed that product hazardousness, warning understandability, and warning attractiveness strongly related to subjects willingness to read the warnings. Unexpectedly, readability analyses indicated subjects would more likely read warnings with more sentences/statements and written at higher grade levels. A different set of variables was related to purchasing intentions. Subjects reported greater willingness to purchase products that were more familiar and which had more attractive packaging. Regression analyses were also performed to obtain models predictive of reading warnings and purchasing intentions. The results are discussed in terms of manufacturers' concerns of sales and consumer safety. The relative independence of subjects' purchasing intentions and the variables related to reading warnings suggests that manufacturers can place appropriate and effective warnings on pest-control products without the fear of reduced buying intentions.”
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Silver, N. Clayton and Wogalter, Michael S. (1989): Broadening the Range of Signal Words. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 33rd Annual Meeting 1989. pp. 555-559.
“Most guidelines on warning design recommend using an appropriate signal word that connotes the degree of hazard involved. Usually three levels of signal words, DANGER, WARNING, and CAUTION are suggested for warnings that convey high to low degrees of hazard. The purposes of the present research were threefold. The first goal was to examine whether these terms differed in implied hazard level. The second goal was to determine whether an additional group of five words recommended in guidelines or used in previous research differed in connoted hazard level. The third goal was to explore the possibility of increasing the number and range of words that connote different levels of hazard. Subjects rated a list of 84 potential signal words on six questions assessing strength, severity of implied injury, likelihood of implied injury, attention-gettingness, carefulness, and understandability. The results indicated that DANGER connoted greater strength (arousal) than WARNING and CAUTION, but the results failed to show a difference between WARNING and CAUTION. Among other words tested, DEADLY was seen as having strongest arousal connotation, and NOTE the least. From the long list of 84 terms, a "short" list of 20 signal words was developed based on understandability, low variability, shortness of word, and frequency of use. It is suggested that an expanded list of signal words might alleviate potential problems of habituation from overuse of the currently recommended terms.”
© All rights reserved Silver and Wogalter and/or Human Factors Society
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Martin, Elaine G. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1989): Risk Perception and Precautionary Intent for Common Consumer Products. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 33rd Annual Meeting 1989. pp. 931-935.
“This study examined whether accident analysis reduces accident frequency misestimations and lead to heightened precautionary intent for products. Subjects generated or were provided with accident scenarios and then made estimates. Other subjects made estimates at either a quick or slower pace without analysis. These and an additional group of subjects then rated precautionary intent for the products. Subject gave ratings for confidence in their estimations and reported whether they had injury experience related to the products. No differences were found among group correlations with actual frequencies. The Hurried subjects reported lower precautionary intent ratings than other groups. Subjects with injury experience reported higher precautionary intent than subjects without such experience. No relationship was found between precautionary intent and frequency estimates. Personal knowledge of accidents rather than general knowledge of accidents or frequencies may be a better predictor of consumers' intended behavior.”
© All rights reserved Martin and Wogalter and/or Human Factors Society
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Marwitz, D. Bradley and Wogalter, Michael S. (1989): Training Potential Witnesses to Produce Higher Quality Face Composites. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 33rd Annual Meeting 1989. pp. 1324-1328.
“This study attempted to determine if training and familiarization with a face composite system would improve the quality of the produced composites. Subjects were trained in the use of the Mac-a-Mug Pro system over two sessions during which they constructed eleven composites (six from memory and five with the face in view). The results indicate that the composites produced while the target face was in view were significantly better than the composites produced from memory, and that both improved with practice. Initial training with the composite system prior to exposure to the first face or after the first face did not affect composite quality. These results have implications for the training of personnel at high risk of witnessing a crime.”
© All rights reserved Marwitz and Wogalter and/or Human Factors Society
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Marwitz, D. Bradley and Wogalter, Michael S. (1988): Bias in Photospreads of Faces: A Comparison of Two Lineup Construction Methods. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 32nd Annual Meeting 1988. pp. 541-543.
“Recent research suggests that the current method of lineup construction produces biased or suggestive lineups. Earlier studies used face composite stimuli to assemble the lineups. The present study uses more realistic materials, actual face photographs. Ten pairs of subjects constructed photospread lineups using the traditional method of selecting lineup members who are similar in appearance to the suspect. Another ten pairs of subjects constructed lineups using an alternative construction method. The lineups were then given to a separate group of subjects who had never seen the photographs before and were asked to try to select the face that was the basis for each lineup. The results showed that traditional lineup construction method produced bias towards the target/suspect. The alternative construction method produced less bias, but not significantly less than the traditional method. These results have implications for law enforcement personnel concerned with the construction and presentation of lineups.”
© All rights reserved Marwitz and Wogalter and/or Human Factors Society
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Wogalter, Michael S., McKenna, Nancy A. and Allison, Scott T. (1988): Warning Compliance: Behavioral Effects of Cost and Consensus. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 32nd Annual Meeting 1988. pp. 901-904.
“Two laboratory experiments were conducted to examine the behavioral effects of cost and consensus on warning compliance. Subjects performed a chemistry demonstration task using a set of instructions that contained a warning directing them to wear a safety mask and gloves. In Experiment 1, cost was manipulated by locating the masks and gloves in either an accessible location (low cost) or a less accessible location (high cost). In Experiment 2, consensus was manipulated by the additional presence of a confederate subject who either did or did not comply with the warning. The results showed reduced compliance to the warning when the cost was high, and that the compliance rate was biased up or down depending on the behavior of the confederate. Implications of this research for facilitating warning effectiveness and safety are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Wogalter et al. and/or Human Factors Society
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Young, Stephen L. and Wogalter, Michael S. (1988): Memory of Instruction Manual Warnings: Effects of Pictorial Icons and Conspicuous Print. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 32nd Annual Meeting 1988. pp. 905-909.
“The present research sought to determine whether the salience of warning messages would improve the memory of warnings in proceduralized instructions. Subjects studied one of four instruction manuals for a gas-powered electric generator under the guise that they would later operate the generator. In the manual, the appearance of eight different warning messages were altered in two ways: 1) The verbal messages were printed in either conspicuous print (larger with color highlighting) or in plain print (same as the other text). 2) The verbal warning messages were either accompanied by meaningfully-related icons or the icons were absent. Three kinds of memory tests were given to subjects. The results showed that subjects who received the manual containing Conspicuous Print, Icons Present warnings recalled the verbal warning content and the semantic learning of the icons significantly better than subjects who received one of the three manuals. Implications for the design of instruction manual warnings are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Young and Wogalter and/or Human Factors Society
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Wogalter, Michael S. and Marwitz, D. Bradley (1987): The Effect of Constructing Multiple-Choice Distractor Items Around a Single Target Alternative. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 31st Annual Meeting 1987. pp. 378-381.
“The present research sought to determine whether the construction of multiple-choice alternatives based around a critical target answer would facilitate the selection of the target answer. Subjects were given a multiple-choice test consisting of 60 questions, each having four alternatives. Twenty of the 60 questions were the critical questions and were constructed to have no correct answer (i.e., asked nonsense) but appeared legitimate. One of the alternatives for the critical questions was the critical alternative, around which the other three distractor alternatives were derived. This was accomplished by systematically substituting each of the critical alternatives' three components with another plausible component. This procedure produced a set of alternatives where the critical alternative was more similar to the other alternatives than they were to each other (i.e., it was the most prototypic). The results of two experiments using ranking and proportion scores showed a response bias effect: subjects selected the critical alternatives more often than would be expected by chance. Further analyses revealed that in lower ability subjects the effect disappeared when the critical alternatives were embedded in sets of distractors which had randomly ordered components. High ability subjects selected the critical alternative more often than chance regardless of the distractors' component arrangement. The results suggest that test-makers should avoid constructing distractor alternatives around a correct alternative because the information provided in the set of alternatives may influence test-takers to select the target answer without any knowledge of the information being assessed.”
© All rights reserved Wogalter and Marwitz and/or Human Factors Society
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Wogalter, Michael S., Desaulniers, David R. and Brelsford, John W. (1987): Consumer Products: How Are the Hazards Perceived?. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 31st Annual Meeting 1987. pp. 615-619.
“Two questionnaire studies were conducted examining potential components of perceptions of consumer product hazardousness. In Study 1 subjects rated 72 consumer products on perceived hazardousness, expected severity of injuries, and perceived likelihood of injury. The results indicate that severity relates more strongly than injury likelihood with perceived hazardousness. Several product knowledge variables were also examined: these results indicate that technological complexity and confidence in knowing the product's hazards add unique variance beyond severity in the prediction of hazard perception. In Study 2 subjects generated accident scenarios for each of 18 consumer products. Subjects rated each scenario according to the severity of the accident and the probability of its occurrence and also provided ratings of overall product hazardousness. Results support the findings of Study 1. The severity of product injury scenarios were strongly and positively correlated with hazardousness. Probability of injury ratings added negligible hazard predictiveness beyond severity. Product hazardousness was highly correlated with the level of precaution subjects would reportedly take when using the product. For high hazard products the first scenario generated was most severe compared to the other two scenarios. For low hazard products, the first scenario was most probable and the least severe of the scenarios generated. Practical and theoretical implications of the results are discussed.”
© All rights reserved Wogalter et al. and/or Human Factors Society
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