Modeling Work for Cognitive Work Support System Design in Operational Control Centers

The design of cognitive work support systems for operational control centers is an emerging challenge for human factors practitioners. This paper presents an example of applying techniques derived from the interactive design tradition to a context-of-use analysis, including both knowledge elicitation and modeling, to inform the design of a cognitive work support system. The paper integrates insights from the Cognitive Control Model—specifically, contextual control modes—into the cognitive analysis of work. The inclusion of COCOM in contextual inquiry helps to identify important contextual factors and brings meaning and organization to the different patterns of activity observed. Specifically, the paper presents the results of a contextual inquiry for airline operation control centers in the form of work models that have been extended to account for contextual control modes.