Economical Visual Attention Test for Elderly Drivers

Akinari Onishi · 2020 · arXiv

URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2008.04723v3

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Abstract

Traffic accidents involving elderly drivers are an issue in a super-aging society. A quick and low-cost aptitude test is required to reduce the number of traffic accidents. This study proposed an oddball-serial visual search task that assesses the individual's performance by his or her responses to the presence of cued stimuli on the screen. Task difficulty varied by changing the number of simultaneous stimuli; Accordingly, low performers were detected. In addition, performance correlated with a

Summary

Methodological study proposing a low-cost visual attention test for elderly drivers based on an oddball-serial visual search task delivered on a standard computer with a single response button. Difficulty is manipulated by varying the number of simultaneous on-screen stimuli; the dependent measure is the participant's ability to detect cued stimuli. The author argues the test is a tractable alternative to driving simulators or UFOV systems for screening cognitive decline relevant to crash risk in a super-aging Japanese context.

Key finding

Performance on the proposed oddball-serial visual search task scales with difficulty (number of simultaneous stimuli) and correlates with age, identifying low performers consistent with age-related decline in attention and visual search relevant to driving.

Methodology

Computer-based oddball-serial visual search task with simultaneous stimuli count varied across difficulty levels. Single response button hardware. Performance compared across age groups; correlation between performance and age computed. Compared to existing UFOV and driving-simulator screens on cost and time-to-administer.

Sample size: Reported as low-cost screening study; specific N not extracted from sections reviewed

Quality score: 5 / 5

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