Study on the Relationship between Drivers’ Personal Characters and Non-Standard Traffic Signs Comprehensibility

Abstract

Drivers’ incorrect perception and interpretation of the road space are among reasons for human errors. Proper road markings are elements improving perception of road space. Their effectiveness relies on traffic participants receiving the provided information correctly. The range of signs used is constantly expanding and unusual situations in traffic require use of non-standard signs or an unusual combination of existing standard signs. The aim of this study was to explore the level of comprehensibility of four different types of non-standard signs. The relationship between the level of comprehensibility of these signs and personality traits of the drivers was also studied. A total of 369 drivers were tested using a questionnaire to analyze the traffic signs comprehensibility and Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI). The obtained results indicate that symbolic signs, unlike symbolic and text ones, are much better comprehended by drivers. Men comprehend the significance of non-standard symbolic regulatory signs better than women. Higher level of comprehensibility of symbolic and text regulatory signs is shown by older, better educated drivers and professional drivers. The study found there is a link between personality traits of the driver and the comprehensibility of symbolic regulatory signs.

Traffic sign comprehension among motorcyclists: the effect of sign display and sign type

“…There are a few modifications from the previous studies. First, previous studies used different road users as participants, for example, Koyuncu and Amado [18] used general road users, while Shinar and Vogelzang [16] and Wontorczyk and Gaca [31] used car or professional drivers, and Maulina et al [17,29,32] focused on motorcyclists. This current research would be focused on motorcyclists, as they have the highest accident rate in Indonesia.…”

“…The inconsistent results from the previous studies showed that the effect of sign type on sign comprehension is still inconclusive. Such discrepant results could be due to the different sign display that was used by those studies [11,[26][27][28][29]31]. Therefore, the current study aimed to further examine the interaction of sign display and sign type in affecting sign comprehension.…”

Evaluation of Traffic Signs Information Volume at Highway Tunnel Entrance Zone Based on Driver’s Visual Characteristics

“…The driver’s misperception and interpretation of road space is one of the causes of human errors. Reasonable traffic signs are extremely important to improve the perception of road space, and the effectiveness of traffic signs depends on whether the driver has received the information conveyed correctly ( 34 ). The individual qualities of drivers and the design features of signs have a considerable influence on the driver’s ability to comprehend traffic signs.…”

The Personality and Resilience of Competitive Athletes as BMW Drivers—Data from India, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain

“…Neurotic personality predicts dangerous driving behaviors [ 22 ]. High neuroticism leads drivers to become distracted and ignore traffic signs, including nonstandard ones, more often [ 23 ]. Drivers with high neuroticism also react more impulsively to traffic light changes [ 21 ].…”