Auditory stimulus-response compatibility and control-display design

This study investigated spatial stimulus-response (S-R) compatibility effects for auditory signals, in order to suggest interface design recommendations. The auditory signals were presented in transverse and longitudinal orientations relative to the listener. The results showed that stimulus-response correspondence was the prime factor contributing to spatial compatibility and that there were spatial compatibility effects for both orientations. Relatively longer reaction times (RTs) and higher error percentages (EPs) were found for the longitudinal orientation than for the transverse one. The results suggest that the longitudinal orientation should not be used for getting attention and soliciting responses when using auditory signals. Transverse orientation signals produced quicker and more accurate responses. For faster reaction times, auditory signals should be positioned on the right hand side of right-handed operators. The length of warning time interval between an alerting visual message and the presentation of an auditory signal was shown to affect reaction time in the transverse stimulus orientation. To shorten reaction times, people should be given a greater than 1-s, and preferably a 3-s, forewarning period before being asked to make a response. For both orientations, reaction times varied with assigned hand posture, indicating that the layout of response keys on, for example, a control console should be compatible with the hand posture of the operators. Uncrossed hand posture should be assigned in the transverse orientation and the right and left hands should be used for the rear and front keys, respectively, in the longitudinal orientation. This study showed that in man–machine interface design, in addition to spatial S-R compatibility, hand position and an appropriate warning time should also be considered. © 2007 Taylor & Francis.