Cognitive Depletion in the Wild: a Case Study of NMR Spectroscopy Analysis

TL;DR

This study investigates cognitive depletion during complex NMR spectroscopy analysis, highlighting its impact on workflow and performance, and exploring potential mitigation strategies through an ethnographic approach.

Contribution

It provides an ethnographic case study of cognitive depletion in real-world scientific analysis, emphasizing decision-making challenges and workflow effects.

Findings

Cognitive depletion affects decision quality in NMR analysis

Workflow efficiency declines with increased cognitive load

Potential strategies can mitigate cognitive depletion effects

Abstract

NMR spectroscopy analysis is a detail-oriented analytic feat that typically requires specific domain expertise and hours of concentration. This work presents an ethnographic-style study of this analysis process in the context of evaluating the symptoms of cognitive depletion. The repeated, non-trivial decisions required by and the time-consuming nature of NMR spectroscopy analysis make it an ideal, real-world scenario to study the symptoms of cognitive depletion, its effect on workflow and performance, and potential strategies for mitigating its deleterious effects.