The Relationship of Age and Cognitive Characteristics of Drivers to Performance of Driving Tasks on an Interactive Driving Simulator

• Published in: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting 1995-10, Vol.39 (2), p.172-176
• Main Authors: Guerrier, José H., Manivannan, P., Pacheco, Anna, Wilkie, Frances L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1541-9312; 1071-1813; 2169-5067
• DOI: 10.1177/154193129503900211

Older adults depend highly on the automobile to satisfy their mobility needs. They use the private car for the majority of their trips. However, driving is not without risks for older drivers and those who share the road with them. Drivers 65 and older contribute to more accidents per mile driven than younger drivers except those 18-24 years old. Furthermore, they are more likely to be injured or die as a result of such accidents than their younger counterparts. Current thinking suggests that the cognitive abilities of older drivers may be the best explanation for these accidents. This study investigated the contribution of age and specific cognitive, psychomotor, and perceptual dimensions upon the performance of driving tasks on an interactive simulator. The results suggest that age as such does not explain performance of driving tasks. Rather, age-sensitive cognitive characteristics of drivers provide a better understanding of performance of specific driving tasks.