The effects of focused attention training on the duration of novice drivers' glances inside the vehicle

Several studies have documented that the failure of drivers to attend to the forward roadway for a period lasting longer than 2-3 s is a major cause of highway crashes. Moreover, several studies have demonstrated that novice drivers are more likely to glance away from the roadway than the experienced drivers for extended periods when attempting to do a task inside the vehicle. The present study examines the efficacy of a PC-based training programme (FOrward Concentration and Attention Learning, FOCAL) designed to teach novice drivers not to glance away forthese extended periods of time. A FOCAL-trained group was compared with a placebo-trained group in an on-road test, and the FOCAL-trained group made significantly fewer glances away from the roadway that were more than 2 s than the placebo-trained group. Other measures indicated an advantage for the FOCAL-trained group as well. Statement of relevance: Distracted driving is increasingly a problem, as cell phones, navigation systems, and other in-vehicle devices are introduced into the cabin of the automobile. A training programme is described that has beentested on the open road and can reduce the behaviours that lead to crashes caused by the distracted driving.

Evaluation of different speech and touch interfaces to in-vehicle music retrieval systems

In-vehicle music retrieval systems are becoming more and more popular. Previous studies have shown that they pose a real hazard to drivers when the interface is a tactile one which requires multiple entries and a combination of manual control and visual feedback. Voice interfaces exist as an alternative. Such interfaces can require either multiple or single conversational turns. In this study, each of 17 participants between the ages of 18 and 30 years old was asked to use three different music retrieval systems (one with a multiple entry touch interface, the iPod, one with a multiple turn voice interface, interface B, and one with a single turn voice interface, interface C) while driving through a virtual world. Measures of secondary task performance, eye behavior, vehicle control, and workload were recorded. When compared with the touch interface, the voice interfaces reduced the total time drivers spent with their eyes off the forward roadway, especially in prolonged glances, as well as both the total number of glances away from the forward roadway and the perceived workload. Furthermore, when compared with driving without a secondary task, both voice interfaces did not significantly impact hazard anticipation, the frequency of long glances away from the forward roadway, or vehicle control. The multiple turn voice interface (B) significantly increased both the time it took drivers to complete the task and the workload. The implications for interface design and safety are discussed.

Can younger drivers be trained to scan for information that will reduce their risk in roadway traffic scenarios that are hard to identify as hazardous?

Younger drivers (18-21 years) are over-involved in crashes. Research suggests that one of the reasons for this over-involvement is their failure to scan areas of the roadway for information about potential risks in situations that are hazardous, but not obviously so. The primary objective of the present study is to develop and evaluate a training program that addresses this failure. It was hypothesised that PC-based hazard anticipation training would increase the likelihood that younger drivers would scan for potential hazards on the open road. In order to test this hypothesis, 12 trained and 12 untrained drivers' eye movements were measured as they drove a vehicle on local residential, feeder and arterial roads. Overall, the trained drivers were significantly more likely to gaze at areas of the roadway that contained information relevant to the reduction of risks (64.4%) than were the untrained drivers (37.4%). Significant training effects were observed even in situations on the road that were quite different from those shown in training. These findings have clear implications for the type of training of teen drivers that is necessary in order to increase their anticipation of hazards.