Accident; analysis and prevention
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Comparative Study
Assessing the awareness of performance decrements in distracted drivers.
Many studies have documented the performance decrements associated with driver distractions; however, few have examined drivers' awareness of these distraction effects. The current study measured how well-calibrated drivers are with respect to performance decrements from distracting tasks. In this test track study, 40 younger and older drivers completed a series of tasks on a hand-held or hands-free cell phone while driving around a course in an instrumented vehicle. ⋯ In some cases, estimates of distraction were opposite of the observed effects (i.e., smaller estimates of distraction corresponded to larger performance deficits). Errors in calibration were unassociated with several measures of overconfidence in safety and skill, among other variables. We discuss the implications of these findings for potential mitigation strategies for distracted driving.
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Rear-end collisions and distraction are major concerns and basic research in cognitive psychology concerning attention in visual search is applicable to these problems. It is proposed that using yellow tail lamps will result in faster reaction times and fewer errors than current tail lamp coloring (red) in detecting brake lamps (red) in a "worst case" scenario where brake lamp onset, lamp intensity and temporal and contextual cues are not available. ⋯ Drivers and non-drivers detect absence and presence of red brake lamps faster and with greater accuracy with the proposed yellow tail lamps than red tail lamps without the aid of any of the aforementioned cues. Vehicle conspicuity will be improved and reductions in rear-end collisions and other accidents will be reduced by implementing the proposed yellow tail lamp coloring.
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Recreational boating is a popular leisure time activity in many countries. It is estimated that, in Australia, boating incidents cause more harm than rail and air crashes combined and, in terms of transport, are second only to motor vehicle crashes as a cause of serious injury. The consumption of alcohol among recreational boaters is considered an important risk factor for fatalities and injuries among both operators and passengers. ⋯ The odds of not having a drink were associated, after adjusting for age, with having completed a boating education course and with carrying children less than 12 years on board. The use of alcohol was not found to be prevalent among WA recreational boat owners. Based on these findings, it is recommended that efforts to decrease boating-related incidents, such as through education and legislation measures, be monitored over time to determine the effects of these strategies upon safety behaviours.
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This study examined the effects of repeated iPod interactions on driver performance to determine if performance decrements decreased with practice. Nineteen younger drivers (mean age=19.4, range 18-22) participated in a seven session study in the University of Calgary Driving Simulator (UCDS). Drivers encountered a number of critical events on the roadways while interacting with an iPod including a pedestrian entering the roadway, a vehicle pullout, and a lead vehicle braking. ⋯ Difficult iPod interactions significantly increased the amount of visual attention directed into the vehicle above that of the baseline condition. With practice, slowed responses to driving hazards while interacting with the iPod declined somewhat, but a decrement still remained relative to the baseline condition. The multivariate results suggest that access to difficult iPod tasks while vehicles are in motion should be curtailed.
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Diving is the most frequent cause of spinal cord injury (SCI) from recreation and sport in Canada. This study was done to identify risk factors for SCI from diving in the province of Quebec. ⋯ The target for prevention of diving SCI is male youths and young adults. Above-ground pools are too shallow and small for diving. Deep ends of many in-ground pools are excessively shallow and short since many SCIs resulted from striking the up-slope. Prevention of SCI from diving needs to focus on education of potential victims, pool vendors and manufacturers, and regulations for safety norms in private pools. Water safety should highlight diving as a high-risk activity, and emphasize that most home pools and natural sites are unsafe. Safer evidence-based pool designs and more effective warnings need to be implemented.