The Relation Between Cognitive Control and Risky Driving in Young Novice Drivers

Abstract

This study investigated if decreased cognitive control, reflected in response inhibition and working-memory performance, is an underlying mechanism of risky driving in young novice drivers. Thirty-eight participants aged 17 to 25 years old, with less than 1 year of driving experience, completed a simulated drive that included several risky driving measures. Measures of response inhibition and verbal working memory were negatively associated with the standard deviation of the lateral lane position. Response inhibition, but not working memory, was also negatively related with the detection of, reaction to, and crashes with road hazards. Unexpectedly, increased cognitive control did not always relate to decreased risky driving. Visuospatial working-memory performance related positively with yellow-light running and negatively with the minimal following distance inside the city center. The findings evidence the role of cognitive control in explaining risky driving in young novice drivers. This relationship, however, differed per cognitive function and per driving parameter. Implications for future research and traffic safety interventions are discussed.

Key words:

• cognitive control
• response inhibition
• risky driving
• working memory
• young novice drivers

Notes

¹Piloting showed that the original ITI and stimulus duration parameters lead to no or minimal failed inhibitions, whereas the probability for Fillmore et al. (2006) was .3. This difference could be attributed to the drug history of the test sample (i.e., former cocaine users who made fewer errors in response to doses of cocaine) in the study by Fillmore et al. (2006). Both changes increased task difficulty and thereby the number of failed inhibitions on no-go trials.

²Given the automatic adaptation, participants make mistakes in 50% of the trials. Pilot testing showed that due to this continuous adaptation, the majority of participants in the pilot test experienced the task as frustrating and/or tiring.

³The lack of red-light running might be explained by the minimal inclusion of red lights in the driving scenario (i.e., only 3). Jongen et al. (2011) included 10 red lights and did report red-light running in a sample of young novice drivers (i.e., two age groups, 17–18 years old and 22–24 years old). For future studies, it would be preferable to balance the number of yellow and red lights.

SSRT = stop-signal reaction time; No-go errors = only the errors with an invalid cue were included; VSWM = visuospatial working memory; VWM = verbal working memory; SDLP = standard deviation of lateral lane position; Speeding = percentage of distance driven over the speed limit in zones 50 km/h, 70 km/h, and 90 km/h; Yellow lights = number of yellow-light runnings; Collisions = amount of crashes; PRT = perception reaction time; MT = movement time; TBRT = total braking reaction time; Following = minimal following distance to lead vehicle inside and outside the city center.

SSRT = stop-signal reaction time; No-go errors: 0 = no invalid no-go errors, 1 = invalid no-go errors; VSWM = visuospatial working memory; VWM = verbal working memory; Age: 0 = 18 years, 1 = older than 18 years; Gender: 0 = men, 1 = women; Driving experience: 0 = < 1,287 km, 1 = > 1,287 km; SDLP = standard deviation of lateral lane position; Speeding = percentage of distance driven over the speed limit in zones 50 km/h, 70 km/h, and 90 km/h; Yellow lights = number of yellow-light runnings; Collisions = amount of crashes; PRT = perception reaction time; MT = movement time; TBRT = total braking reaction time; Following = minimal following distance to lead vehicle inside and outside the city center.

*p < .05 (one-tailed). **p < .01 (one-tailed).

R² = explained variance; B = unstandardized beta-coefficient; β = standardized beta-coefficient; SDLP = standard deviation of lateral lane position; Yellow lights = number of yellow-light runnings; Collisions = amount of crashes; PRT = perception reaction time; TBRT = total braking reaction time; Following = minimal following distance to lead vehicle inside and outside the city center; SSRT = stop-signal reaction time; No-go errors: 0 = no invalid no-go errors, 1 = invalid no-go errors; VSWM = visuospatial working memory; VWM = verbal working memory; Age: 0 = 18 years, 1 = older than 18 years; Gender: 0 = men, 1 = women; Driving experience: 0 = < 1,287 km, 1 = > 1,287 km.

*p < .05 (one-tailed). **p < .01 (one-tailed).