Biomedical subjects

Heikki Summala

Publications and source records attributed to Heikki Summala.

15 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Cross-cultural differences in driving skills: a comparison of six countries.

The first aim of the present study was to investigate the applicability of the two-factor structure (perceptual-motor skills by 11 items, e.g., "fluent driving"; safety skills by 9 items, e.g., "conforming to the speed limits") of the Driver Skill Inventory (DSI) among British, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Iranian, and Turkish drivers. It was also hypothesized that the combination of self reported high ratings of perceptual-motor skills and low ratings of safety skills creates a serious risk for dangerous driving and road accident involvement. The second aim of this study was, therefore, to investigate this asymmetric relationship between perceptual-motor and safety skills in traffic penalties and accident involvement. Two hundred and forty two drivers were chosen from each of the six countries, matched for age and sex. The results of exploratory factor analyses together with target rotation showed that the two-factor structure of DSI found in "safe" Northern and Western European countries were highly congruent. However, the safety skills factor of DSI in Greece, Iran, and Turkey was relatively incongruent in spite of high factor similarity found in perceptual-motor skills. The asymmetric relationship between perceptual-motor and safety skills on traffic penalties was found in Finland and Turkey. A negative relationship between safety skills and the number of accidents was found both in Greece and Iran while a positive relationship between perceptual-motor skills and the number of accidents was found only in Iran.

Accidents, Traffic↗

PubMed2005

Driver Behaviour Questionnaire: a follow-up study.

The aim of the present study was to investigate time-across stability of different factor solutions (two to six factors) of the Driver Behaviour Questionnaire (DBQ) and to examine the changes on self-reported driving pattern in a follow-up sample (n=622) after three years of the first responses. Repeated measures ANOVA indicated that there was a significant change between Time 1 and Time 2 scores in six items of the DBQ. Drivers reported less competitiveness while driving at Time 2 but more speeding, drinking and driving, driving to wrong destinations and having no recollection of the road just travelled. Significant Time x Sex x Age interactions were found in change scores of four items. Young males and middle-aged female drivers emerged as a group of drivers who changed their self-reported driving pattern over three years. Additionally, sex, age or both had main effects on scores of 21 items. Males and young drivers reported more violations than females and older drivers, whereas female drivers reported more errors and lapses. After running possible factor solutions with Tucker's Phi agreement coefficients, the results indicated that the four- and two-factor solutions were the most stable and interpretable ones. The two-factor solution showed better time-across stability than the four-factor structure did, although the factor solutions found at Time 1 and Time 2 were not as identical as expected. Separate analysis revealed that drivers who had high annual mileage at Time 1 and Time 2 showed the strongest two-factor time-across stability. The test-retest reliability was 0.50 for errors, 0.76 for violations and 0.61 for the whole scale.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Factors influencing the use of cellular (mobile) phone during driving and hazards while using it.

This study addressed the strategic decisions on not using a mobile phone at all while driving, and phone-related driving hazards among those drivers who do use one, reflecting tactical and operational level processes. A representative sample of 834 licensed drivers who own a mobile phone were interviewed on their phone use and hazards, background factors, and self-image as a driver. Logistic regression models indicated that older age, female gender, smaller amount of driving, and occupation promoted not using a phone at all while driving. Additionally, low skill level and high safety motivation contributed to this decision. Among those who used a phone while driving, exposure to risk in terms of higher mileage and more extensive phone use increased phone-related hazards, as also did young age, leading occupational position, and low safety motivation. Neither gender nor driving skill level had any effect on such self-reported hazards. This study clearly indicates that potential risks of mobile phones are being controlled at many levels, by strategic as well as tactical decisions and, consequently, phone-related accidents have not increased in line with the use of the mobile phones.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

In-car cell phone use and hazards following hands free legislation.

OBJECTIVE: A new law took effect in Finland at the beginning of 2003 which prohibits the handheld use of mobile phones while driving a motor vehicle. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of the law on phone usage and self-reported safety during the first few months and 16 months later to determine whether the initial level of compliance with the law had been sustained. METHODS: Data were collected by Gallup home poll before (spring 2002) and after legislation took effect (spring 2003 and 2004). A representative sample of drivers who owned a cell phone (n = 836 to 966) was interviewed each time. On-road observations were also collected in four cities for 2003 and 2004. RESULTS: Just after the law, 97% of drivers were aware of the new hands free legislation. In sharp contrast to the pre-law rate of 16%, 43% reported not using the phone while driving immediately after the law and 41% one year later. The occasional users especially reduced their use of phones while driving. The law was correlated to reductions in self-reported handheld use of cell phones while driving, from 55.6% pre-law to 15.2% immediately after passage. In spite of this change, however, the hands free legislation did not reduce self-reported involvement of Finnish drivers in phone-related hazards. Handheld usage was still lower in 2004 than pre-law (20.0%), but the 32% increase from 2003 was significant. Observational data collected in Finland in 2003 and 2004 showed an even higher upward trend in handheld use (87% increase, from 3.1% to 5.8%; pre-law data were not available), and matched a similar increase reported by McCartt and Geary (2004) in their observational evaluation of New York's handheld mobile phone law. CONCLUSION: The self-reports indicate that the hands-free law reduced handheld phone use, among occasional users especially, but did not reduce phone-related hazards. The effect of the law on phone use substantially declined within one year.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Aging and time-sharing in highway driving.

PURPOSE: Proper time-sharing--visual attention allocation--between the road view ahead and other targets is an essential requirement for safe driving, along with other visual and attentional performance. Earlier on-road research has shown that neurologic problems (Alzheimer disease, brain injury) impair time-sharing during in-car tasks. This study analyzed age effects on time-sharing performance. METHODS: Thirty participants in three age groups (mean age 22, 34, and 67 years) drove an instrumented car a trip of 350 km and performed an in-car visual search task with either a motor (keying) or vocal response. The frequency and duration of glances at the in-car targets, total time eyes off the road during task, speed, and lateral displacement of the car were recorded. The participants were also tested on a battery of cognitive tasks during the midway break. RESULTS: The elderly used a longer total time looking at the in-car display and they traveled a longer distance with eyes away from the road. The number of long (>2 sec) glances and the car's lateral displacement on the road were larger among the elderly than the young drivers. The difference between the older and younger participants was larger when a motor (keying) response was required. The age effects were mediated by cognitive performance (best by the Trail Making A test) rather than by vision parameters. CONCLUSION: Older drivers have difficulties in time-sharing in highway driving already at the age of 65 to 70 years.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Females do not have more injury road accidents on Friday the 13th.

BACKGROUND: This study reinvestigated the recent finding that females - but not males - die in traffic accidents on Friday the 13th more often than on other Fridays (Näyhä S: Traffic deaths and superstition on Friday the 13th. Am J Psychiatry 2002, 159: 2110-2111). The current study used matched setting and injury accident data base that is more numerous than fatality data. If such an effect would be caused by impaired psychic and psychomotor functioning due to more frequent anxiety among women, it should also appear in injury crashes. METHODS: We used the national Finnish road accident database for 1989-2002. To control seasonal variation, 21 Fridays the 13th were compared in a matched design to previous and following Fridays, excluding all holidays, on number of accidents, male/female responsibility for accidents, and the number of dead, injured and overall number of active participants (drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists) as a consequence of the accident. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in any examined aspect of road injury accidents among the three Fridays, either in females or males. Women were not overrepresented in crashes that occurred on Fridays 13th. CONCLUSION: There is no consistent evidence for females having more road traffic crashes on Fridays the 13th, based on deaths or road accident statistics. However, this does not imply a non-existent effect of superstition related anxiety on accident risk as no exposure-to-risk data are available. People who are anxious of "Black Friday" may stay home, or at least avoid driving a car.

Accidents, Traffic↗

PubMed2004

Sleep-related fatal vehicle accidents: characteristics of decisions made by multidisciplinary investigation teams.

OBJECTIVES: To analyze factors that explain the attribution of crash causes as sleep-related by accident investigators. DESIGN: Analysis of national database of fatal road accidents studied in depth. All nonprofessional nonintoxicated car drivers responsible for a fatal accident from 1991 to 2001 were included (N = 1464). SETTING: Finland, with approximately 5.1 million inhabitants and 2.3 million motor vehicles. PARTICIPANTS: N/A. INTERVENTIONS: N/A. MEASUREMENTS: Comprehensive database recorded by multidisciplinary investigation teams, with specific emphasis on the availability of sleep-related driver variables and sleep-related causal decisions by teams. RESULTS: Injury severity, age, and marital status of the responsible car driver were related to the proportion of missing data in fatigue-related variables in the database (sleeping time, time awake, lifetime mileage). While there were differences between investigation teams and their activities, a series of logistic regression models showed that the lack of relevant variables in the database did not affect the proportion of accidents attributed to falling asleep (10% of cases) or as having fatigue-related causal factors (an additional 5% of the cases). The accident type (head-on and running-off versus other) and road conditions (dry or wet versus icy or snowy pavement) predicted the investigation teams' attribution of sleep-related causes in all models. CONCLUSIONS: Multidisciplinary teams' attribution of sleep-related causal factors were rather stable, comprising 10% to 15% of the cases investigated, independent of the availability of specific sleep-related information.

Accidents, Traffic↗

PubMed2004

The Manchester Driver Behaviour Questionnaire: a cross-cultural study.

The aim of the present study was to investigate if the original factorial structure of the Manchester Driver Behaviour Questionnaire (DBQ) was replicated in Finland and The Netherlands. A postal questionnaire survey of drivers was carried out in Britain, Finland and The Netherlands. Exploratory factor analysis together with target (Procrustes) rotation and factorial agreement indexes were calculated to investigate the applicability of Finnish and Dutch versions of DBQ. Results of the factor comparisons showed that the DBQ four-factor structures found in Finland and The Netherlands were congruent but not perfect with the target structure found in Britain. Reliabilities of the scales were around the same level as in the British data. In addition to the four first-order factors, two second-order factors (deliberate violations and unintentional errors) were found in all three countries which supports the original structure by Reason et al. Issues related to cross-cultural use of traffic behaviour questionnaires are discussed.

Aggression↗

PubMed2004

The "genetics" of driving behavior: parents' driving style predicts their children's driving style.

It can be hypothesized that children inherit their parents' driving habits both through genetic disposition and model learning. A few studies have shown indeed that parents' and their children's traffic convictions and accidents correlate which, however, may be due to life style and other exposure factors. This study aimed at investigating the relationships between parents' and their children's self-reported driving behavior. The subjects were 174 parent-child pairs who independently completed a questionnaire. Driving behavior-driving style-was evaluated by means of Manchester driver behavior questionnaire (DBQ), while data about driving exposure, life style, accidents, and traffic tickets were also collected. A series of regression models indicated that parents' self-reported driving behavior explains their children's respective self-reported behavior, even when exposure and demographic and life-style factors are controlled.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Time-sharing strategies in driving after various cerebral lesions.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: To analyse time-sharing strategies in patients with cerebral lesions when they performed everyday in-car tasks in real-life highway driving. A case-control study. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Thirteen male patients with brain damage and 11 healthy controls participated. The frequency and duration of glances at the in-car tasks, total time of eyes-off the road during tasks, speed and lateral displacement of the car were recorded. MAIN OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Long glances away from the road and consequent large lateral displacements were characteristic for patients with anterior damage, while the patients with more posterior lesions used frequent short glances at the in-car task. CONCLUSION: Two different time-sharing strategies that appeared to be related to different aetiology were found in the patients, indicating different control of the driving task. It is proposed that standardized on-road dual tasks should be used for detecting problems in allocation of attention during driving.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Traffic sign symbol comprehension: a cross-cultural study.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the comprehension levels of highway traffic sign symbols used in different countries, to identify underlying rules that affect comprehension levels, and recommend approaches to deal with the problem. The need for such an evaluation was based on today's travel culture where people are often licensed in one country and then drive--without any further training--in another country. We compared the comprehension levels of different traffic sign symbols in four countries with moderate to high levels of motorization: Canada, Finland, Israel, and Poland. Five different driver populations were sampled in each country: novice drivers, college students, tourists, problem drivers, and older drivers. There were large differences in comprehension among specific sign messages, different countries, and different driver populations. Signs were comprehended best when they were consistent with general ergonomic guidelines for display design as they relate to spatial compatibility, conceptual compatibility, physical representation, familiarity, and standardization. Illustrations of compliance with these principles and violations of these principles are presented, and their implication for traffic safety are discussed. Specific recommendations for sign design that is compliant with ergonomic principles, and for greater international cooperation in sign symbol design are made.

Accidents, Traffic↗

PubMed2002

Interpersonal violations, speeding violations and their relation to accident involvement in Finland.

The aim of the present study was to replicate the distinction between errors, lapses and violations, and to identify aggressive violations from normal or highway code violations. Furthermore, the relationship of these behaviours with road traffic accidents was examined. A total number of 1126 Finnish drivers completed a questionnaire containing the Driver Behaviour Questionnaire (DBQ) with extended violations scale, and questions regarding background information, such as age, gender and mileage. Also, questions about previous accidents and fines were asked. Factor analysis showed that a four-factor structure seemed more appropriate than the earlier established three-factor structure. The four factors were errors, lapses, speeding violations and interpersonal violations. The two types of violations result from different motives, and seem to be associated with different kinds of affect. Both interpersonal and speeding violations were reported most by young males, which was consistent with earlier findings. Logistic regression analyses indicated that errors predicted active accident involvement after partialling out the effects of demographic variables, whereas interpersonal violations were positively related to involvement in passive accidents. This was presumably due to different reporting tendencies of respondents. Speeding tickets were predicted by speeding and interpersonal violations and lapses and penalties for speeding by both kinds of violations and errors. Penalties for speeding, parking and other offences were predicted by interpersonal violations. The implications of these results are discussed.

Accident Proneness↗

PubMed2002

Anger and aggression among drivers in three European countries.

Recent reports of 'road rage' in the British media give the impression that driver aggression is escalating. In order to understand this phenomenon we need to know what it is about driving that provokes motorists to feel anger and then to go on to express that anger in the form of aggression. A postal questionnaire survey of more than 2500 drivers was carried out in three European countries: Britain, Finland and the Netherlands. The study had three main aims: (a) to discover how angry, if at all, a range of situations on the road make drivers, (b) to find out how many drivers are likely to react aggressively to those situations, and (c) to investigate individual and/or cultural differences in terms of anger and/or aggressive responses among motorists. Results indicate that the same types of behaviour provoke anger and aggression in all three countries, and that traffic density may play a role.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Driving performance of drivers with impaired central visual field acuity.

This study investigated the performance of drivers with impairment to their central field of vision but with normal peripheral vision, due to retinoschisis, in a safety critical driving tasks. The performance of five male drivers with impaired vision (VA 0.2), aged between 40 and 50 years, all with more than 250,000 km life-time driving experience and a good safety record, and five normal vision controls, matched by gender, age, driving experience and safety record, were tested in 40 km/h city traffic and in a motorway car following situation. All participants displayed appropriate driving ability in city traffic and all were able to detect and respond adequately to a conflicting 'stunt pedestrian' and 'stunt cyclist' situation. There were no apparent differences between the drivers with impaired vision and those with normal vision. In the car following situation, the participants drove at 80 km/h, 50 m behind a lead car, on a 30 km section of motorway in normal traffic. During each trial, the lead car started to decelerate at an average of 0.53 m/s2 while the participant either looked at the car in front (control) or performed a memory and addition task (non-visual attention) while looking at the car in front. The participants were required to press the brake pedal when they noticed a decrease in headway. The participant's brake reaction time to the onset of the lead car's brake lights was also tested. The drivers with impaired vision were significantly slower, by 0.2 s, in detecting the onset of brake lights than the normal vision drivers. Their headway closure detection was 0.7 s slower than normal vision drivers, but this difference was not statistically significant in this small data. In spite of some impairment in car following (central vision task), the results together with the clean record of these drivers with retinoschisis support the idea that visual acuity of 0.5 (the European Union norm) is not a necessary prerequisite for safe driving.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Moral judgment and drivers' behavior among Brazilian students.

It is well known that lifestyle, social deviance, and criminal background are related to involvement in road accidents. This study addressed the connection between moral judgment and driving behavior, especially deliberate violations of the traffic law. 260 university students (age 18-30 years, 41% women) completed the Sociomoral Reflection Measure and Driver Behavior Questionnaire. No significant associations were found, probably due to the small variance in Moral Judgment score in this selected sample. This study presented a Portuguese 28-item version of the Driver Behavior Questionnaire that reproduced the same four-factor structure as the British version: ordinary violations, aggressive violations, errors, and lapses.

Accidents, Traffic↗