Age-Related Driving Performance: Effect of Fog Under Dual-Task Conditions
DOI: 10.17077/drivingassessment.1262
archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified
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Summary
This study investigates age-related differences in driving performance under dual-task conditions and varying visibility levels, specifically focusing on the impact of simulated fog. Motivated by previous research documenting age-related decrements in visual performance and multi-tasking abilities, the authors aimed to determine whether reduced contrast from inclement weather differentially affects older drivers. The research addresses the critical safety concern that older drivers may face increased accident risks due to a diminished capacity to manage multiple driving tasks simultaneously when visibility is compromised. The experiment utilized a driving simulator with 16 participants: eight older drivers (mean age 75) and eight younger drivers (mean age 23). All participants had normal or corrected-to-normal vision and at least two years of driving experience. Participants performed a primary car-following task, maintaining a constant distance behind a lead vehicle whose speed varied according to sine wave functions. Simultaneously, they performed a secondary light-detection task, identifying the location of a signal light change in an array above the roadway. The study employed a mixed design with age group as a between-subjects variable and fog density (no fog, medium fog, dense fog), light change position, and task condition (single vs. dual) as within-subjects variables. Dependent measures included accuracy and response time for light detection, and speed difference error for car following. Results indicated significant age-related deficits in dual-task performance. Older drivers demonstrated lower accuracy and longer response times for the light-detection task compared to younger drivers, with these impairments exacerbated under dense fog conditions. Statistical analysis revealed significant interactions between task condition, fog density, light position, and age group. Specifically, older drivers’ response times increased significantly when detecting peripheral light changes in foggy conditions. Regarding the primary driving task, while no main effect of age was found for car-following performance, older drivers exhibited greater error in maintaining distance from the lead vehicle when simultaneously performing the light-detection task. This decline in primary task performance was particularly evident under dual-task conditions, suggesting that the cognitive load of the secondary task disproportionately disrupted the driving control of older adults. The findings suggest that reduced visibility, such as that caused by fog, significantly impairs the ability of older drivers to perform multiple tasks. The combination of decreased accuracy, slower reaction times, and increased car-following errors indicates that older drivers are at a higher risk of accidents in poor weather conditions due to limited cognitive resources for multitasking. These results highlight the importance of considering environmental factors and task complexity in assessing driving safety for the aging population, implying that interventions or vehicle designs aiding visibility and reducing cognitive load could be beneficial for older drivers.
Provenance
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| Stage | Outcome | Tool | Model | Prompt | Attempts | Completed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| discover | success | Crossref | — | — | 1 | 2026-08-09 |
| archive | success | canonical_url | — | — | 1 | 2026-08-09 |
| extract | success | cached | — | — | 3 | 2026-08-10 |
| clean | success | clean | — | — | 1 | 2026-08-09 |
| chunk | success | chunk | — | — | 1 | 2026-08-09 |
| embed | success | embed | Qwen/Qwen3-Embedding-8B | — | 1 | 2026-08-09 |
| promote | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-08-09 |
| summarize | success | llm | qwen3.6-27b-nvidia | summ-v5 | 2 | 2026-08-10 |
| tag | success | vector_similarity | — | — | 10 | 2026-08-11 |
| verify | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-08-10 |
Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-nvidia on 2026-08-10; verification: verified.
Topics
Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.
- age related perceptual decline
- weather rain fog snow
- speed distance perception
- disability glare
- sensory abilities
- useful field of view
Information type
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- Empirical Findings: behavioral performance data