ABSTRACT
A hallmark of cognitive task analysis (CTA) is the notion of discovery. A range of CTA methods are used by many related communities of practice, including cognitive systems engineering, expertise studies, naturalistic decision making, cognitive work analysis, strong ethnography, situated cognition, and human-centered computing (Hoffman & Militello, 2008). CTA methods extend traditional task analytic techniques, focusing primarily on complex cognitive phenomena in the context of work. Although applied from many different perspectives and in pursuit of many different goals, CTA methods are often used as part of the initial phases of the scientific process in which investigators are observing and examining a phenomenon prior to hypothesis testing. This requires investigators to approach the phenomenon of study with an open mind. In contrast to experiments designed to confirm or disconfirm specific hypotheses, CTA methods are designed to aid in the highly contextual exploration of complex phenomena. Of particular interest are data that violate current understanding of the domain of study. In fact, the notion of discovery of unexpected elements has been suggested as a criterion for success for any CTA study (Klein & Militello, 2001).
