The Combination of Two Training Approaches to Improve Older Adults' Driving Safety

Objective. An increasing number of older adults rely on the automobile for transportation. Educational approaches based on the specific needs of older drivers may help to optimize safe driving. We examined if the combination of an in-class education program with on-road education would lead to impro...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Traffic injury prevention 2008-01, Vol.9 (1), p.70-76
Main Authors: Bédard, Michel, Porter, Michelle M., Marshall, Shawn, Isherwood, Ivy, Riendeau, Julie, Weaver, Bruce, Tuokko, Holly, Molnar, Frank, Miller-Polgar, Jan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accident Prevention - methods
Accidents, Traffic - prevention & control
Age Factors
Aged
Aging - physiology
Analysis of Variance
Automobile Driver Examination
Automobile Driving - education
Female
Geriatric Assessment
Humans
Male
Ontario
Probability
Safety Management - methods
Sensitivity and Specificity
Sex Factors
Task Performance and Analysis
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Summary:Objective. An increasing number of older adults rely on the automobile for transportation. Educational approaches based on the specific needs of older drivers may help to optimize safe driving. We examined if the combination of an in-class education program with on-road education would lead to improvements in older drivers' knowledge of safe driving practices and on-road driving evaluations. Methods. We used a multisite, randomized controlled trial approach. Participants in the intervention group received the in-class and on-road education; those in the control group waited and were offered the education afterwards. We measured knowledge of safe driving practices before and after the in-class component of the program and on-road driving skills before and after the whole program. Results. Participants' knowledge improved from 61% of correct answers before the in-class education component to 81% after (p < .001). The on-road evaluation results suggested improvements on some aspects of safe driving (e.g., moving in roadway, p < .05) but not on others. Conclusions. The results of this study demonstrate that education programs focused on the needs of older drivers may help improve their knowledge of safe driving practices and actual driving performance. Further research is required to determine if these changes will affect other variables such as driver confidence and crash rates.
ISSN:1538-9588
1538-957X
DOI:10.1080/15389580701670705