Cognitive styles as an explanation of experts’ individual differences: A case study in computer-assisted troubleshooting diagnosis

Individual differences are a crucial aspect of field studies because of the consequences they can have on performance. However, in Cognitive Ergonomics, individual differences have mainly been interpreted as expertise effects. As can be noted from the literature, this limitation has led to difficulties in explaining differences between experts. Using a case study which identifies significant variations between expert performances [Jouglet, D., Piechowiak, S., Vanderhaegen, F., 2003. A shared workspace to support man-machine reasoning: application to cooperative distant diagnosis. Cognition, Technology & Work 5, 127–139], we attempt to go beyond the traditional approach based on expertise levels. Instead, we refer to the notion of cognitive styles. First, we consider methodological issues raised by a posteriori identification of cognitive styles within this diagnosis task. Second, we present the results of our analysis showing that individual differences are related to a particular dimension of cognitive style in which a balance between task requirements and cognitive resources is managed. Finally, we draw conclusions on the importance of cognitive styles in Cognitive Ergonomics.