TSA screeners may be slow, but they're accurate: study

If airport security line sometimes feel like they take forever, travelers fuming over the delays should know that screeners taking their time may actually be most effective at the security gate, according to a new study....In an experiment pitting TSA agents against Duke University students, the professionals were slower than the civilians in a test measuring visual searching ability, but the civilians were less precise.

“What we found was that the TSA officers were more accurate in finding the target than the members of the Duke community. They also took more time, so it’s more of a methodical search, which led to better performance,” said Duke University psychologist Stephen Mitroff, who is leading the research, which is part of a broader Department of Homeland Security-funded initiative.