Self-regulation of driving and its relationship to driving ability among older adults

Abstract

Although it is known that older drivers limit their driving, it is not known whether this self-regulation is related to actual driving ability. A sample of 104 older drivers, aged between 60 and 92, completed a questionnaire about driving habits and attitudes. Ninety of these drivers also completed a structured on-road driving test.A measure of self-regulation was derived from drivers' self-reported avoidance of difficult driving situations. The on-road driving test involved a standard assessment used to determine fitness to drive. Of the 90 participants who completed the driving assessment, 68 passed the test, eight passed but were recommended to have driving lessons and 14 failed. Driving test scores for the study were based on the number of errors committed in the driving tests, with weightings given according to the seriousness of the errors.The most commonly avoided difficult driving situations were parallel parking and driving at night in the rain, while the least avoided situation was driving alone. Poorer performance on the driving test was not strongly related to overall avoidance of difficult driving situations. Stronger relationships were found between driving ability and avoidance of specific difficult driving situations. These specific driving situations were the ones in which the drivers had low confidence and that the drivers were most able to avoid if they wished to. These results may reflect a tendency for those with poorer driving ability to lose confidence in their driving, and begin to avoid difficult driving situations. However, there are a number of situations that drivers find difficult to avoid.

Examining the process of driving cessation in later life

“…As Coughlin et al (2004) point out, however, the discussion with family members is not always harmonious and although almost 60 % followed the advice given by family members, over half of these were upset by the decision. Some older drivers self-regulate, gradually reduce driving by for example not going out at night, or in the rush-hour, and avoiding difficult turns and motorways (Baldock et al 2006;Holland 2001;Musselwhite and Haddad 2010a;Rabbitt et al 1996;Rabbitt and Parker 2002). In addition, some older people seek out advice or training on their driving skills (Musselwhite and Haddad 2010a;Musselwhite 2010).…”

Older drivers’ opinions of criteria that inform the cars they buy: A focus group study

“…Relative to younger drivers, older drivers tend to cause more multi-vehicle crashes and, because they are frailer, the severity of their injuries and fatality rates are disproportionately high (Bédard et al, 2002;Braver and Trempel, 2004;Cook et al, 2000;Evans, 2001;Li et al, 2003;Lyman et al, 2002). Unfortunately, evidence suggests that awareness of impairments does not necessarily result in appropriate or sufficient self-regulation of driving habits (Baldock et al, 2006;Banister and Bowling, 2004), necessitating in other interventions.…”

VLSI Implementation of Eye Detection System

“…The eye portion is extracted from 0.2h to 0.6h from the whole face [8,9,10]. Extracted Eye portion is shown in Fig.…”