4. Cognitive Task Analysis

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For tasks with a high cognitive component, (i.e., decision-making, problem-solving, or judgments), a traditional task analysis may fail to identify those cognitive skills required to perform a given task or job. A cognitive task analysis is performed to identify and describe the cognitive components of a task. There are a variety of methodologies available to help the instructional designer represent and define the various knowledge structures needed to perform a task or job. These techniques can also be used to define expert systems and the “expert” in Intelligent Tutoring Systems.

There are three knowledge structures: declarative, procedural, and strategic

1. Declarative knowledge tells us why things work the way they do, or that the object or thing has a particular name or location. It includes information about the concepts and elements in the domain and the relationships between them. This level's knowledge includes facts, principles, rules of science, and concepts. “Knowing the rules of good database design” is one example. Another is “knowing the names, location, and prices of all the SKUs in inventory.”

Methods for eliciting declarative knowledge:

1. • Card Sorting - The researcher obtains sets of concepts that broadly cover the domain (derived from glossary, texts, or gleaned from the introductory tutorial talk), then transfers each concept onto a card. Subject matter experts then sort the cards into common groups or functions according to similarity. The SMEs then create the sorting criteria. The groups themselves are grouped until eventually a hierarchy is formed.
   • Data Flow Modeling - An expert is interviewed. The researcher then draws a data flow diagram using data gathered from the interview. Expert verifies diagram.

2. Procedural knowledge tells us how to perform a given task. Procedural knowledge contains the discrete steps or actions to be taken and the available alternatives to perform a given task. With practice, procedural knowledge can become an automatic process, thus allowing us to perform a task without conscious awareness. This automatically also allows us to perform more than one complex task at a given time. A couple of examples would be “creates a v-ditch using a motored grader” or “types a letter at 95 words per minute.”

Methods for eliciting procedural knowledge:

• Interviewing - This is a variation of a basic interview. There are several variations. Some of them are:
1. 1. Working backwards through the problem;
   2. Drawing a concept map;
   3. Showing expert photographs depicting the system in a number of states and asking questions;
   4. The expert describes the procedure to the interviewer and then the interviewer teaches it back to the expert.
• Discourse Analysis (observation) - An expert helps a user while a researcher records the process. The transcript is then analyzed for tasks and elements. The data is then converted into a taxonomy.

3. Strategic knowledge is comprised of information that is the basis of problem-solving, such as action plans to meet specific goals; knowledge of the context in which procedures should be implemented; actions to be taken if a proposed solution fails; and how to respond if the necessary information is absent. An example of this would be a production plant manager who formulates a plan to meet the needs of a greatly increased forecast.

Methods for eliciting strategic knowledge:

1. • Critical Decision Method (Interview) first method - Interview an expert to identify non-routine events that challenged her expertise and events that made a significant difference. A timeline of events is then constructed and key points are further probed.
   • Critical Decision Method (Interview) second method - A semi-structured interview is performed utilizing specific probes designed to elicit a particular type of information. The data is then examined for perceptual cues, judgment details, and decision strategy details that are not generally captured with traditional reporting methods.

Also, see Cognitive Task Analysis.