Driving Task: How Older Drivers’ On-Road Driving Performance Relates to Abilities, Perceptions, and Restrictions

Abstract

This study examined a cohort of 227 older drivers and investigated the relationship between performance on the electronic Driver Observation Schedule (eDOS) driving task and: (1) driver characteristics; (2) functional abilities; (3) perceptions of driving comfort and abilities; and (4) self-reported driving restrictions. Participants (male: 70%; age: M = 81.53 years, SD = 3.37 years) completed a series of functional ability measures and scales on perceived driving comfort, abilities, and driving restrictions from the Year 2 Candrive/Ozcandrive assessment protocol, along with an eDOS driving task. Observations of participants' driving behaviours during the driving task were recorded for intersection negotiation, lane-changing, merging, low-speed maneuvers, and maneuver-free driving. eDOS driving task scores were high (M = 94.74; SD = 5.70) and significantly related to participants' perceived driving abilities, reported frequency of driving in challenging situations, and number of driving restrictions. Future analyses will explore potential changes in driving task scores over time.

Personal and Clinical Factors Associated with Older Drivers’ Self-Awareness of Driving Performance

“…The eDOS itself was acceptable to participants and feasible to administer for observers, and it was found to be representative of older drivers' everyday driving routes in an Australian sample (Koppel et al, 2013). This evaluation method has reliability and face validity, as well as ecological validity (Koppel et al, 2016).…”

Patients’ and caregivers’ experiences of driving with chronic breathlessness before and after regular low-dose sustained-release morphine: A qualitative study

“…[48] The latter has been shown to more accurately reflect driving performance, and is closer to the approach used in this study. [48,49] Similarly, caregivers' perception is not an optimal reflection of patients' driving skills, but their assessment of specific driving aspects correlates with on-the-road performance. [50] Opioids may affect cognitive function, which may affect self-perception.…”

Linking people and activities through community mobility: an international comparison of the mobility patterns of older drivers and non-drivers

“…Most older adults prefer to retain their ability to drive for as long as possible and their personal automobile remains their primary mode of transport (Turcotte, 2012; Zeitler and Buys, 2015; Mazer et al , 2016). As such, many older drivers use self-regulatory strategies, including adjusting where and when they get behind-the-wheel, making fewer and shorter trips in peak traffic, at dusk and at night, and not driving during inclement weather (Unsworth et al ., 2007; Rapoport et al , 2013; Levasseur et al , 2015; Koppel et al , 2016; O'Neill et al , 2019). Not driving in inclement weather is of particular interest, as there are few studies that have examined if older adults replace driving with other forms of transport due to more challenging weather conditions, or simply do not go out at all.…”