Psychology 409a
January 23, 2006
By Jessica Fonseca
Rothe. J.P., Driving Lessons: Exploring Systems That Make Traffic Safer, The University of Alberta Press, 2002, pp 10-19.
a. Neuropsychology deals with the most highly developed and intricate aspects of cognition and behavior, such as attention and perception.
b. Neuropsychological examinations can answer questions about a person’s driving ability because driving is a complex cognitive task.
c. Functional neuroimaging data has explained the relationship between brain activity and behavior in normal subjects.
a. Good health has normally been considered a necessity for the ability to drive well. In many countries, passing an initial medical test is required to be able drive.
b. Studies have shown that elderly drivers have a higher accident and fatality rates then any other age group. That is partially due to age-associated diseases such as Alzheimer’s that affect driving.
c. Young and old drivers have a significantly higher risk of a fatal crash than middle-age drivers.
a. There is a positive relationship between sensation-seeking and risky driving. With neuropsychological research they can screen for the sensation-seeking predisposition.
b. After an acute disease, such as a stroke, the patient must past a medical exam before being able to drive again.
c. Testing one’s cognition is useful, however testing one’s visual perception would be a better test because visual perception problems is an important cause of vehicle crashes.
a. Drowsy driving is a cause of motor-vehicle crashes. Rumble strips on the shoulder of roads have reduced crashes by 40 percent.
b. Untreated or unknown sleep disorders, such as narcolepsy, can cause serious problems while driving.
c. Handedness, whether someone is right or left handed, affects driving. Left-handed people are more likely to have car crashes then right-handed people.
a. Society pressures people to work, which can interfere with sleep. With lack of sleep there is more risk of accidents while driving.
http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleId=165700657
I picked this web page because it talked about appropriate driving tests for older drivers. The site gave an example of an 86-year-old man who killed 10 people and injured 30 while driving. Screening tests test for proper interpretations of sensory input, attention, association of thought and appropriate judgment but this site argues that an increase in utilization of visuo-spatial tests would be better.
http://sleepfoundation.org/hottopics/index.php?secid=10&id=94
This is a Website from the National Sleep Foundation. People who visit their site can learn how to prevent drowsy driving, can learn about sleep facts and myths, and learn what makes teenagers sleepy. They also have news articles of accidents caused by drowsy driving.
http://www.luhs.org/depts/injprev/Transprt/tran3.htm
This web page is interesting because it gives statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System on elderly drivers. They also discuss problems that can affect an elderly persons driving, such as hearing loss, Arthritis, and diabetes. They also have a section titled “Safety Tips for Elderly Drivers” that I thought was an excellent way for older drivers to be more careful.
My home page: www.soc.hawaii.edu/leon/409as2006/fonseca/fonseca-outline1.htm
Class home page: www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy24/classhome-g24.htm