Browsing by Subject "MODM"

Objectives. This study delves into the cognitive load of multi-objective decision-making (MODM) tasks. It employs a multi-dimensional measurement approach using brain oscillations, eye activity, and self-reports to examine the increase in cognitive load. The study wants to answer how an increasing number of objectives affect the development of cognitive load in the two-alternative choice task. The framework consists of cognitive load and working memory capacity limitations literature and considers decision-making in consumer products. Methods. The participants’ (N=50) task was to choose which one they preferred from two consumer product bundles. The objectives were manipulated with the number of products (2, 4, 6, 8, and 10) included in bundles. The variables used to examine the cognitive load in the MODM task were self-reported cognitive load, EEG measures of frontal theta synchronization, and frontal alpha desynchronization, as well as blink rate and pupil size difference. Results and conclusions. Overall, the findings were partially mixed as the results indicated that the self-reported cognitive load and information overload were increasing linearly as the decision objectives (the number of products in the bundles) increased. However, brain oscillations were not significantly affected by the increase in objectives. Interestingly, the blink rate decreased, but pupil size was not detected to change as a function of an increasing number of objectives. Instead, the eye activity indicated a visual load when there were more objectives in the bundles.