Corrigendum: Assessing the Driver's Current Level of Working Memory Load With High Density Functional Near-infrared Spectroscopy: A Realistic Driving Simulator Study

Unni, Anirudh; Ihme, Klas; Jipp, Meike; Rieger, Jochem · 2018 · Crossref

DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2018.00498

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Summary

This document is a corrigendum issued in December 2018 to correct errors in the original 2017 study titled “Assessing the Driver’s Current Level of Working Memory Load With High Density Functional Near-infrared Spectroscopy: A Realistic Driving Simulator Study” by Unni et al. The correction addresses a specific methodological error regarding the calculation of driving behavior parameters, specifically the deviation from the lane center. In the original publication, the authors incorrectly included data phases before and after lane changes when determining this deviation, despite stating in the methods that these phases should be omitted. The corrigendum provides the corrected text for the Data Analysis and Results sections. The revised methods clarify that the average deviation from the lane center was calculated by omitting phases before and after lane changes, which constituted 34% of the data samples. Other driving behavior parameters, such as the proportion of time driven in the correct speed range (±5 km/h tolerance), reaction time for speed adjustments, and variance in brake, throttle, and steering inputs, were defined consistently with the original intent but are restated for clarity. Reaction time was measured from the moment participants passed a speed sign until they reached the target speed, calculated only on correct trials. The corrected results indicate significant effects of the n-back working memory condition on several driving behaviors. As working memory load increased, the time participants drove at the correct speed decreased significantly (slope: 6.6% decrease per n-back level, p < 0.001). Reaction time to reach the target speed increased significantly (slope: 0.23 s increase per n-back level, p < 0.05), and brake variance increased significantly (slope: 0.08 increase per n-back level, p < 0.01). However, the n-back condition had no significant effect on throttle variance, steering variance, or lateral deviation from the lane center. Table 1 in the corrigendum presents the updated descriptive statistics for these parameters across 0-back to 4-back conditions, reflecting the corrected calculations. The authors state that while the statistical values and descriptive statistics in the original article were incorrect due to the inclusion of inappropriate data segments, this error does not change the scientific conclusions of the study. The core finding remains that working memory load affects safety-relevant driving behaviors, specifically speed maintenance and braking variability, while not significantly impacting steering or lateral position control. The original article has been updated to reflect these corrections.

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• workload measurement
• cognitive capacity variation
• mental demand
• stress driving

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• Empirical Findings: physiological data, behavioral performance data
• Theoretical Contribution: theory or model