Threaded Cognition

An Integrated Theory of Concurrent Multitasking

Dario D. Salvucci & Niels A. Taatgen

Threaded cognition is an integrated theory of concurrent multitasking - that is, doing two or more things at once. The theory posits that streams of thought can be represented as threads of processing coordinated by a procedural resource, without the need for task-specific executive processes. By instantiating this mechanism as a computational model, threaded cognition provides explicit predictions of how multitasking behavior can result in interference, or lack thereof, for a given set of tasks. The theory has been tested in several representative domains ranging from simple laboratory tasks such as dual-choice tasks to complex real-world domains such as driving and driver distraction.

The theory of threaded cognition has been implemented as a computational model within the framework of the ACT-R cognitive architecture. The implementation has no effect on existing ACT-R models, but adds significant new functionality to the architecture in terms of accounting for multitasking behavior. The downloads below are provided for those interested in using the mechanisms of threaded cognition, or “threading,” in their own ACT-R modeling efforts.

Download

• threads.zip : everything you need to start using threads
  [or try this for older versions of ACT-R]
   
• models.zip : sample models described in the full paper

Reference

Salvucci, D. D., & Taatgen, N. A. (2008). Threaded cognition: An integrated theory of concurrent multitasking. Psychological Review, 115, 101-130.