Optimal Range of Information Quantity for Decision Making

Abstract

Information quantity is an important factor in decision making, but the relationship between them in digital interface is still unclear. This paper presents a study on the range of information quantity that is most suitable for decision making in digital interface of complex information systems. Interface image stimuli of nuclear power plant with linear change in image entropy are presented to subjects in a decision-making task. Subjects are required to make proper decision by pressing corresponding keys on the keyboard when an abnormal value appears. Results show that interfaces with image entropy between 0.4 and 0.6 have higher decision efficiency than other ranges. The decision load increases as the quantity of information increases. And different genders show differences, females prefer lower information quantity (0.4 to 0.6) and males prefer higher information quantity (0.4 to 1.2). These findings can be used to quickly control the quality of interfaces at the early stage of design and evaluate interfaces in an efficient way.