Protocol
Measure workload before blaming attention
Attention is not an unlimited resource you can restore with a motivational email.
When it fits
- Errors increase and the explanation is that people need to 'focus more.'
When to avoid it
- NASA-TLX and similar measures are subjective workload tools; they do not diagnose fatigue, competence or intent.
Why it matters
Assess the task's mental demand, time pressure, effort, frustration and related workload dimensions before concluding the worker is careless. Compare workload across normal and failure-prone conditions. Use the result to simplify interfaces, redistribute work, change timing or reduce concurrent demands.
Steps
- How mentally demanding is the task?
- What time pressure exists?
- How much effort is spent managing the interface rather than the goal?
- When do errors rise relative to workload?
- Which demand can be removed or redistributed?
An example
If errors spike only while one analyst monitors three interfaces during cutover, redesign coverage before retraining concentration.
Check your result
A corrective action addresses measured task demand or leaves evidence that workload was not the main contributor.
Keep this limit in mind
- NASA-TLX and similar measures are subjective workload tools; they do not diagnose fatigue, competence or intent.
Evidence and sources
NASA TLX is an established subjective instrument for assessing workload across human-machine tasks.
A workload score does not diagnose why the workload is high or whether an individual is fit for duty.
NASA Task Load Index (TLX) · NASA TLX overview and publications
FAA human-factors practice explicitly treats automation, alerts, workload, complexity and fatigue as design concerns affecting safe human performance.
Aviation certification practices are highly domain-specific; only general human-system design principles transfer.
Technical Discipline: Flight Deck Human Factors · Flight Deck Human Factors