Reassessing Fitness-to-Drive in Drinker Drivers: The Role of Cognition and Personality

Abstract

Drunken driving is among the main challenges for road safety by causing worldwide motor-vehicle crashes with severe injuries and deaths. The reassessment of fitness-to-drive in drivers stopped for drunken driving includes mainly psychological examinations. The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness and the consistency of selected variables of different psychological driving-related dimensions (i.e., cognitive skills and personality) in discriminating 90 male drinker drivers (DD) from matched non-drinkers controls. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), the Mental Rotation Test (MRT), and the Perspective-Taking Test (PT) were administered to assess overall cognitive functioning, and object- and self-based spatial transformation abilities, respectively. Participants completed a computerized test measuring resilience of attention (DT), reaction times (RT), and perceptual speed (ATAVT). The Personality Psychopathology Five scales (i.e., PSY-5: Aggressiveness-AGGR, Psychoticism-PSYC, Disconstraint-DISC, Negative-Emotionality-NEGE, and Introversion-INTR) the validity scale (L) and the dissimulation index (F-K) were scored from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2). A logistic binomial regression analysis (backward subtraction method) was used to identify discriminant predictors. A prediction analysis (ROC curve method) was performed on the final model. Results showed that the scores obtained in MRT, DT, and the personality measures of PSYC, DISC, NEGE, and INTR significantly discriminated DD from their matched controls with moderate-to-good values of accuracy (0.79), sensitivity (0.80), and specificity (0.79), as well as a good AUC value (0.89). In some cases, the personality dimensions provided—reliable—unexpected results. Low scores of PSYC, NEGE, and INTR were found to predict the membership to the DD group; results are discussed with reference to response management. Personality measures should be assessed with particular attention in a forensic context because they are more prone to be feigned than cognitive ones. Overall, the present study confirmed the relevance of integrating different driving-related psychological dimensions in the evaluation of fitness-to-drive showing the usefulness of standardized tools for the reassessment of drinker drivers.

Individuals learning to drive solo before age 18 have superior spatial navigation ability compared with those who learn later

“…One potential explanation for the link between learning to drive and navigation ability is that those people who learn earlier have greater spatial perspective taking, mental rotation and visuospatial processing ability which lead to being able to learn to drive faster and learning to navigate better. This is supported by evidence that better performance on different facets of spatial cognition are associated with better driving performance (Andrews & Westerman, 2012; Di Meco et al, 2021; Kunishige et al, 2020; Moran et al, 2020; Tinella et al, 2020, 2021a, 2021b) and navigation ability (Garg et al, 2023; Wolbers and Hegarty, 2010). Indeed, spatial skills can predict driving test success in clinical and non-clinical samples (Barco et al, 2014; Barrash et al, 2010; Crizzle et al, 2012).…”

“…Although many studies have shown that specific facets of spatial cognition are associated with driving experience and performance (Andrews & Westerman, 2012; Di Meco et al, 2021; Kunishige et al, 2020; Moran et al, 2020; Tinella et al, 2020, 2021a, 2021b), our study was the first to investigate the relationship between self-reported driving experience and measured wayfinding ability. As hypothesised, we found a significant association between the age one started to drive solo and wayfinding distance, where those who started driving solo below 18 were significantly better at navigating than those who started driving solo aged 18 and above.…”

“…Many studies have shown that spatial cognition is associated with driving ability, where poorer performance on various facets of spatial cognition, including spatial perspective taking, mental rotation and visuospatial processing performance, is associated with worse driving ability (Andrews & Westerman, 2012; Di Meco et al, 2021; Kunishige et al, 2020; Moran et al, 2020; Tinella et al, 2020, 2021a, 2021b). Despite these associations between driving ability and spatial cognition, it remains unclear how driving experience per se is associated with spatial cognition.…”

Fostering an Age-Friendly Sustainable Transport System: A Psychological Perspective

“…Several points have been identified on which psychological sciences can provide input. Cognitive sciences, cognitive neurosciences, neuropsychology, and psychometrics can provide support in the development of training and services that can facilitate (a) the autonomy of individuals from a deeper assessment of available physical and mental resources [38,39,90], (b) comfort [14], the management of (c) the fear of the unfamiliar [13], and of (d) the risk of falls and the fear associated with falls [58], but most importantly can (e) contribute to the psychological training of transport service providers and workers, who will be called upon to recognize the needs of older people and the nature of various factors, including: motor (e.g., appropriate times for getting in and out of cars, avoiding abrupt changes in speed or direction), sensory (e.g., speaking up, making use of large visual aids), psychological (e.g., giving time to ask questions, practicing listening, treating with kindness), technological (e.g., knowing how to use assistive devices for movement). Simultaneously, it is also necessary to envision a redefinition of schedules that will necessarily affect travel times so that the greater commitment required by age-friendly behaviors will not be the sole responsibility of transportation workers.…”

Rethinking Driving Assessment: A Hypothesis-Driven Proposal for Cognitive Evaluation

“…Even secondary tasks, such as interacting with in-vehicle technologies, can be a distraction source leading to traffic crashes [55]. Additionally, a driver's personality and sociodemographic characteristics can significantly influence the driving behavior and the likelihood of crashes [56].…”