Test Drivers in the Daimler-Benz Driving Simulator with Drivers under Diphenhydramine

Friedel, B.; Joo, S.; Reker, K.; Kading, W.; Klostermann, P.; Saturnus, K. S.; Schneider, V. · 1991 · ROSA P / United States. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

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Summary

This study, conducted by the Federal Highway Research Institute and Daimler-Benz AG for the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, investigated the impact of diphenhydramine, a widely used over-the-counter antihistamine, on driving performance. The research was motivated by the difficulty of quantifying drug-related driving risks through epidemiological data and the limitations of laboratory tests in predicting real-world behavior. To address this, the study utilized a high-fidelity driving simulator to assess how medium and high dosages of diphenhydramine affected drivers compared to a control group. The experimental design involved 60 male students aged 22–26, selected for good health and specific personality traits to exclude highly excitable or hypochondriacal individuals. Participants were divided into three groups of 20: a control group receiving no drug, a medium-dosage group (0.71 mg/kg), and a high-dosage group (1.07 mg/kg). Each subject completed a 20-minute test drive comprising ten standardized scenarios, ranging from normal everyday responses to emergency situations requiring quick reactions. Driving variables such as speed, following distance, braking, and collision frequency were recorded. Additionally, psychometric tests assessed attention, perception, and mood, while blood serum levels of the drug were monitored. The study explicitly omitted a placebo group to focus on real-world comparisons where drivers are aware of their medication status. The primary finding was that no significant differences in driving performance variables were observed between the three groups across the ten scenarios. Individual differences within groups were consistently higher than differences between groups. However, in three specific "quick response" scenarios, distinct patterns of hazardous behavior emerged. In the "Dart-Out" and "Following Situation" quick response scenarios, the control group exhibited more hazardous maneuvers than the medication groups. Conversely, in the "Traffic Light Change" quick response scenario, the medium-dosage group showed fewer violations than the control and high-dosage groups. Psychometric tests revealed that the control group became significantly more nervous, while the medication groups reported increased tiredness and reduced concentration. The authors conclude that compensatory mechanisms likely influenced the results. Drivers in the medication groups, aware of the drug’s sedative effects, consciously avoided hazardous maneuvers and concentrated more intensely, thereby offsetting potential impairment. In contrast, the control group, confident in their unimpaired state, adopted a more vigorous and occasionally hazardous driving style. The study suggests that while diphenhydramine may impair physiological functions, motivated drivers can compensate for these effects in simulated environments. However, the authors caution that it remains uncertain whether such successful compensation occurs in real traffic conditions, highlighting the complexity of assessing drug-induced driving impairment.

Key finding

No significant differences in driving performance were found between control and diphenhydramine-treated groups in the driving simulator.

Methodology

simulator

Sample size: 60

Provenance

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Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified.

Topics

Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.

• prescription meds
• simulator validity fidelity
• simulator sickness
• sleep deprivation
• situational awareness
• speed choice

Information type

What kind of knowledge this paper contributes, grouped by family — independent of topic (what it is about) and method (how it was studied).

• Empirical Findings: behavioral performance data
• Methodological Resource: validation psychometrics, tool software