Investigation of Air Traffic Controllers’ Response Strategies in a Free Recall Task: What Makes Auditory Recall Superior to Visual Recall?

This study investigated the response strategies displayed by air traffic controllers (ATCs) recalling visually and auditory presented verbal material in a free recall task. The end-of-list advantage for auditory compared to visually presented item lists (modality effect) was explored by using the procedure described by Beaman and Morton (2000). Results revealed that ATCs’ response sequences frequently included ordered end subsequences of 2 to 6 items. These end subsequences were recalled as an initial run at a similar rate in both modalities, although they occurred more frequently in positions other than initial recall positions in the auditory modality. These results replicate and extend those reported in controlled laboratory studies, and this is despite ATCs’ extended experience with processing visual information. The results are discussed in terms of the functional limitations of visual and auditory item processing and their relevance to air traffic control activities, training, and selection.