The Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) Lab

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CELDi Conference, Stillwater, OK, 11-12 April 2005
Study 2 Experimental Evidence on Multi-Agency
Team Coordination

• The Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) Lab
• Industrial Engineering Department
• University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

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How effectively can we respond to emergency?
Hurricane
Earthquake
Tsunami
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Incident Command System (ICS)

• 9-11 commission recommended ICS
• ICS can provide a unified command center that
  will have a decision maker representing each key
  agency, when multiple agencies or jurisdictions
  are involved in a response

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Problem Statement

• Better organized logistics needed to respond to a
  terrorist attack
• Command and control of multi agency teams
• Supply restocking issues for hospitals and
  ambulances

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Research Goals

• Empirically investigate how multi-agency
  logistics teams respond to emergency that needs
  major operational coordination

• Team performance
• Team cognition

• Identify environmental determinants that affect
  multi-agency logistics team coordination and
  collaboration

Effective multi-agency service teams
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Method

• Participant
• Command and Control Chief
• Fire Chief
• Police Commissioner
• Chief Logistician
• Healthcare Administrator
• Experimental Task
• To provide organized logistics in disaster hit
  by coordinating among multi agencies to help
  rescue civilians and provide necessary medical
  and food help

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Experiment Environment

• Modified RoboCupRescue Simulation
• Provide emergency decision support by
  integration of disaster information, prediction,
  planning and human interface
• Structure of the RCRS
• Fire Chief Module
• Logistician Module

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Multi-agency Logistics Environment
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Independent Variables

• Communication mode
• Types of communications available
• Video Audio Text vs. Audio Text
• Shared Learning
• learning across multiply organizational cultures
• Cross Training vs No Training
• Awareness
• Understanding the activities of others, which
  provides a context for your own activity. High
  level means maximum awareness of the situation.
• High Level vs. Low Level

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Dependent Variables

• Team Performance
• Task time
• Waiting time
• Inventory level
• Team Cognition
• Communication
• Mental models
• Coordination

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Experiment Procedure