Are experienced drivers more likely than novice drivers to benefit from driving simulations with a wide field of view?

Alberti, CF, Shahar, A and Crundall, D ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6030-3631, 2014. Are experienced drivers more likely than novice drivers to benefit from driving simulations with a wide field of view? Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour, 27, pp. 124-132. ISSN 1369-8478

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Abstract

This study aimed to further our understanding of the impact of a restricted field of view on visual search and hazard perception, by comparing novice and experienced driver performance in a driving simulator as a function of the available field of view. Participants encountered a series of virtual hazards during their drive while viewing the world under narrow or wide field of view conditions. The results showed that all drivers were more likely to avoid the hazards when presented with a wide view, even though the hazards only occurred in an area of the screen that was visible in both the wide and narrow view conditions. Experienced drivers also tended to have fewer crashes, and this appeared to be related to a greater speed reduction 10 metres before the hazard. This speed reduction was greatest in the wide field of view condition suggesting that additional information from wider eccentricities was useful in safely navigating the hazardous events. Gaze movement recording revealed that only experienced drivers made overt use of wider eccentricities, and this was typically in advance of any visual cues that might help identify the hazard. This suggests that either early overt attention to wider eccentricities, or continuous covert attention to these extra-foveal regions on approach to the hazard, is responsible for the safer behaviour of experienced drivers when presented with a wide field of view. We speculate about the possible underlying mechanism and discuss possible consequences for HP tests.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour
Creators:	Alberti, C.F., Shahar, A. and Crundall, D.
Publisher:	Pergamon Press
Place of Publication:	Oxford
Date:	November 2014
Volume:	27
ISSN:	1369-8478
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1016/j.trf.2014.09.011 DOI
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	EPrints Services
Date Added:	28 Oct 2015 10:34
Last Modified:	20 Oct 2017 03:00
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/25904

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