Citation

Oviedo-Trespalacios O, Haque MM, King M, Washington S. Traffic Injury Prev. 2017; 18(6): 599-605.

Affiliation

b Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Civil Engineering and Built Environment, Science and Engineering Faculty, 2 George St., S Block, Room 701 Brisbane , QLD 4000 , Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/15389588.2017.1278628

PMID

28095026

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The adaptive behaviour of mobile phone distracted drivers has been a topic of much discussion in the recent literature. Both simulator and naturalistic studies suggests that distracted drivers generally select lower driving speeds; however, speed adaptation is not observed among all drivers, and the mechanisms of speed selection are not well understood. The aim of this research was to apply a driver behavioural adaptation model to investigate the speed adaptation of mobile phone distracted drivers.

METHODS: The speed selection behaviour of drivers was observed in three phone conditions including baseline (no conversation), hands-free and handheld phone conversations in a high-fidelity driving simulator. Speed adaptation in each phone condition was modelled as a function of secondary task demand and self-reported personal/psychological characteristics with a system of seemingly unrelated equations (SURE) accounting for potential correlations due to repeated measures experiment design.

RESULTS: Speed adaptation is similar between hands-free and handheld phone conditions, but the predictors of speed adaptation vary across the phone conditions. While perceived workload of secondary task demand, self-efficacy, attitude towards safety, and driver demographics were significant predictors of speed adaptation in the handheld condition, drivers' familiarity with the hands-free interface, attitude towards safety, and sensation seeking were significant predictors in the hands-free condition. Drivers who reported more positive safety attitudes selected lower driving speeds while using phones.

CONCLUSION: This research confirmed that behavioural adaptation models are suitable for explaining speed adaptation of mobile phone distracted drivers, and future research could be focused on further theoretical refinement.

Language: en

Keywords

Mobile phone distraction; distraction; driving simulator; dual-task; speed selection; young drivers