CritiCall Dispatcher Test Multi-tasking Skills 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A dispatcher is actively talking with a caller about a domestic disturbance when a second call comes in reporting a building fire. What is the BEST approach?
- Ignore the second call until the first call is resolved
- Place the first caller on a brief hold, answer the fire call, dispatch units, and return to the first caller (Correct answer)
- Hang up on the first caller immediately
- Transfer the first caller to voicemail
Correct answer: Place the first caller on a brief hold, answer the fire call, dispatch units, and return to the first caller
Placing the first caller on brief hold to triage a potentially higher-priority call is standard multi-task dispatch practice.
Dispatch multi-tasking involves constant triage. A building fire call must be triaged quickly — if confirmed, it becomes Priority 1 and requires immediate dispatch. The domestic disturbance caller is placed on a brief, polite hold ('I have another emergency call — please hold'). After dispatching fire units, the dispatcher returns to the domestic call. Abandoning either call is unacceptable.
Question 2: Which cognitive skill is MOST critical for managing multiple simultaneous dispatch tasks?
- Photographic memory
- Attention switching — the ability to rapidly shift focus between tasks without losing track of any (Correct answer)
- Ability to work silently
- Mathematical calculation speed
Correct answer: Attention switching — the ability to rapidly shift focus between tasks without losing track of any
Attention switching — rapidly re-engaging full focus on different tasks — is the cornerstone of effective multi-task dispatch performance.
True simultaneous processing is limited in human cognition. What skilled dispatchers actually do is rapid attention switching — dedicating full attention to one task for a brief period, then switching to another without losing the prior task's context. This requires strong working memory, task state awareness, and practiced routines that become automatic.
Question 3: You are typing an incident report, monitoring a radio channel, and tracking a unit on the CAD map when your supervisor asks you a question. What should you do?
- Stop all tasks and focus entirely on the supervisor
- Answer briefly without stopping critical tasks, or ask the supervisor to wait a moment if the radio needs immediate attention (Correct answer)
- Ignore the supervisor until all tasks are complete
- Transfer all active tasks to a colleague
Correct answer: Answer briefly without stopping critical tasks, or ask the supervisor to wait a moment if the radio needs immediate attention
Dispatcher multi-tasking requires managing interruptions while maintaining primary task continuity. Brief responses or polite deferrals keep critical tasks uninterrupted.
Dispatchers operate in high-interruption environments. The skill is learning which tasks can tolerate brief interruptions (non-time-critical typing) and which cannot (active radio monitoring). A quick 'one moment' to a supervisor is appropriate if the radio requires immediate response. After the critical task is stable, the dispatcher returns to the supervisor's inquiry.
Question 4: A dispatcher is managing three active incidents when a fourth call comes in. The dispatcher has no available units. What is the correct action?
- Tell the fourth caller to call back later
- Log the fourth call, assign it a priority, and notify a supervisor that all units are engaged (Correct answer)
- Drop the call to avoid overload
- Dispatch units already on scene to the new call immediately
Correct answer: Log the fourth call, assign it a priority, and notify a supervisor that all units are engaged
All calls must be logged and prioritized regardless of unit availability. Supervisors must be notified when resources are exhausted so mutual aid can be requested.
No call is ever refused or dropped. Even when units are unavailable, the call is entered into the CAD system with its priority level. The supervisor is immediately notified of the resource shortage to authorize mutual aid from neighboring jurisdictions or reassign units from lower-priority calls. The caller is informed of the situation and given an ETA.
Question 5: What technique do experienced dispatchers use to track multiple active incidents without losing information?
- Relying on memory alone
- Using CAD system status boards, incident queues, and notes to maintain visual tracking of all active calls (Correct answer)
- Handling only one call at a time until fully resolved
- Using paper logs for each call
Correct answer: Using CAD system status boards, incident queues, and notes to maintain visual tracking of all active calls
CAD systems provide visual queue and status management, allowing dispatchers to track multiple incidents simultaneously without relying on memory.
Modern dispatch relies on CAD systems to maintain visual displays of all active incidents, their status, assigned units, and elapsed time. Dispatchers use these tools to scan their entire workload at a glance, identify calls requiring follow-up, and detect units that have been on scene unusually long. The CAD system is the dispatcher's external memory and attention management tool.
Question 6: During a multi-tasking assessment, a dispatcher is asked to monitor a scrolling map, listen to audio, and enter data simultaneously. What does this test evaluate?
- Physical stamina and keyboard speed only
- The ability to divide attention across sensory channels and tasks simultaneously — a core dispatch skill (Correct answer)
- Language comprehension alone
- Single-task performance under time pressure
Correct answer: The ability to divide attention across sensory channels and tasks simultaneously — a core dispatch skill
Multi-modal multi-tasking tests replicate the real dispatch environment where visual, auditory, and motor tasks occur simultaneously.
CritiCall's multi-tasking subtests are deliberately multi-modal because real dispatch combines: auditory input (caller/radio), visual monitoring (CAD map, status board), and motor output (keyboard/phone). Each modality uses different cognitive resources, but competition between them still occurs. The test identifies candidates who can perform all three simultaneously above threshold accuracy levels.
CritiCall Dispatcher Test Multi-tasking Skills 2
A dispatcher is actively talking with a caller about a domestic disturbance when a second call comes in reporting a building fire.
What is the BEST approach?