A Meta-Analytic Examination of the Cost and Benefits of Overlay versus Separate Displays

Warden, Amelia C.; Wickens, Christopher D.; Clegg, Benjamin A.; Ortega, Francisco R. · 2023 · Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting

DOI: 10.1177/21695067231192430

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Summary

This meta-analysis addresses the performance tradeoffs associated with overlaying information on a single display versus presenting it on separate displays, a critical issue as augmented reality head-mounted displays (AR-HMDs) become prevalent in military, aviation, and medical domains. The study investigates the costs and benefits of these display formats, specifically examining how task type moderates performance outcomes. The research is motivated by the need to understand whether the reduced scanning effort of overlays outweighs the potential costs of visual clutter, and whether separate displays offer advantages for tasks requiring focused attention. The authors conducted a literature search across multiple databases and technical reports, identifying 218 potential articles. After applying strict inclusion criteria—requiring empirical comparisons of overlay versus adjacent displays or HMDs versus head-down/hand-held displays, within-subjects designs, and sufficient statistical data—17 studies were included. These studies contributed 82 individual effect sizes. The researchers converted various statistics (F-values, t-values, means, and standard deviations) into Cohen’s *d* effect sizes to standardize the data. The analysis categorized tasks into three types: focused attention (monitoring one source), information integration (combining two sources), and dual-tasking (hybrid scenarios). Effect sizes were aggregated and weighted to account for non-independence, with positive values indicating a benefit for overlay displays and negative values indicating a benefit for separate displays. The results revealed no overall significant benefit for either display format across all tasks. However, task type significantly moderated the outcomes. For information integration tasks, overlay displays provided a significant benefit in response time (*d* = 0.86) without compromising accuracy (*d* = 0.06). Conversely, for focused attention tasks, separate displays yielded a significant large benefit in accuracy (*d* = -2.14), while overlay displays showed no significant advantage in response time. Dual-tasking scenarios did not show significant benefits for either display type, though trends suggested a speed-accuracy tradeoff, with separate displays hinting at faster response times and overlays hinting at higher accuracy. These findings support the proximity compatibility principle, suggesting that display design should align with task requirements. Overlay displays, such as AR-HMDs, are advantageous for tasks requiring the integration of information from multiple sources, as they reduce scanning time and effort. However, they introduce visual clutter that can impair accuracy when users must focus on a single information source. Therefore, separate displays are preferable for focused attention tasks. The study concludes that there is no universal superior display format; rather, the optimal choice depends on the specific cognitive demands of the task, providing clear design implications for human-computer interaction in augmented reality environments.

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