Factors influencing emotional driving: examining the impact of arousal on the interplay between age, personality, and driving behaviors
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1487493
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Summary
This study investigates the complex interplay between individual differences—specifically age, personality, and driving experience—and driving behaviors under varying emotional arousal states. Motivated by the persistent threat of road traffic accidents and the limitations of prior research that often isolates single factors or focuses exclusively on Western populations, the authors aim to understand how stable traits and situational emotions jointly influence driving performance. The research specifically addresses gaps in understanding how personality traits mediate or moderate the effects of demographic factors on driving outcomes, particularly within a Chinese cultural context. The researchers conducted a driving simulation experiment involving 40 Chinese participants, predominantly male, with a mean age of 28.1 years and an average of 8.93 years of driving experience. Participants drove a simulated two-lane highway while exposed to various emotional stimuli. Data collection utilized a fixed-based driving simulator to record quantitative metrics including maximum acceleration, speed stability, and steering performance. Emotional states were assessed using the Self-Assessment Manikin (SAM) scale to measure valence and arousal, while personality traits were evaluated using the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ), focusing on Extraversion and Neuroticism. The study employed moderated moderation and mediated moderation analyses to examine the interactions among these variables. The findings reveal that older and more experienced drivers exhibited lower maximum acceleration and better speed stability compared to their younger, less experienced counterparts. Crucially, Extraversion was found to significantly mediate the relationship between age and driving behaviors, with this mediation being moderated by arousal states; specifically, high-arousal conditions amplified risky behaviors associated with Extraversion. Additionally, Neuroticism moderated the relationship between driving experience and driving behaviors, where high levels of Neuroticism diminished the stabilizing benefits typically conferred by driving experience. These results indicate that personality traits do not merely correlate with driving styles but actively shape how demographic factors influence performance under emotional stress. The significance of this study lies in its demonstration that individual differences and emotional states interact to shape driving behaviors, challenging simplistic models of driver risk. By highlighting the mediating role of Extraversion and the moderating role of Neuroticism, the research underscores the importance of considering psychological profiles in traffic safety interventions. The findings suggest that driver education and safety programs should incorporate emotional and personality-based strategies, particularly for high-risk groups such as young, highly extraverted drivers or experienced drivers with high neuroticism. This approach supports the development of targeted, individualized interventions to mitigate the risks associated with emotional driving.
Key finding
Extraversion mediates the relationship between age and driving behaviors under the moderating influence of arousal, while Neuroticism moderates the relationship between driving experience and driving stability.
Methodology
simulator
Sample size: 40
Provenance
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| Stage | Outcome | Tool | Model | Prompt | Attempts | Completed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| discover | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-07 |
| archive | success | canonical_url | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-03 |
| extract | success | cached | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
| clean | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-01 |
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| embed | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-02 |
| enrich | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-07 |
| promote | success | — | — | — | 3 | 2026-06-06 |
| summarize | success | llm | qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant | summ-v5 | 3 | 2026-06-10 |
| tag | success | vector_similarity | — | — | 18 | 2026-06-11 |
| verify | success | — | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
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.
- personality driving
- sensation seeking
- affect mood
- anger road rage
- cultural cross national
- music audio mood
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: physiological data
- Theoretical Contribution: theory or model, computational model