On the limits of advance preparation for a task switch: do people prepare all the task some of the time or some of the task all the time?
This study investigated the nature of advance preparation for a task switch, testing 2 key assumptions of R. De Jong's (2000) failure-to-engage theory: (a) Task-switch preparation is all-or-none, and (b) preparation failures stem from nonutilization of available control capabilities. In 3 experiments, switch costs varied dramatically across individual stimulus-response (S-R) pairs of the tasks-virtually absent for 1 pair but large for others. These findings indicate that, across trials, task preparation was not all-or-none but, rather, consistently partial (full preparation for some S-R pairs but not others). In other words, people do not prepare all of the task some of the time, they prepare some of the task all of the time. Experiments 2 and 3 produced substantial switch costs even though time deadlines provided strong incentives for optimal advance preparation. Thus, there was no evidence that people have a latent capability to fully prepare for a task switch.
Lien
Mei-Ching
MC
Department of Psychology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA. mei.lien@oregonstate.edu
Ruthruff
Eric
E
Remington
Roger W
RW
Johnston
James C
JC
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D003118:Color Perception; D003463:Cues; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological / Q000502:physiology*; D005556:Form Perception; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D009042:Motivation; D011582:Psychological Theory; D011930:Reaction Time; D012718:Set, Psychology