The effect of feedback on attitudes toward cellular phone use while driving: a comparison between novice and experienced drivers.
OBJECTIVE
To assess and compare the effectiveness of a simulation-based approach to change drivers' attitudes toward cellular phone use while driving for younger novice and older experienced drivers.


METHODS
Thirty young novice drivers were tested on a driving simulator in this study. Their performance in dealing with driving tasks was measured for a single task and dual tasks (driving while using a cellular phone) and compared to 30 older experienced drivers tested previously in another study. Half of the younger drivers received video-based feedback regarding their performance in the two conditions, with an emphasis on the contribution of dual-tasking to degraded performance. The other half did not receive any performance feedback. Drivers' perceptions and attitudes toward cellular phone use while driving were investigated by a questionnaire before, immediately after, and again one month following the simulation-based testing for both groups of drivers (feedback; no feedback).


RESULTS
All drivers (including the novice and experienced) reported willingness to engage in driving and talking on a cellular phone in some situations. The simulated driving test showed that a secondary cellular phone task significantly degraded driving performance for both the novice and the experienced drivers. The feedback treatment group (both the novice and the experienced) showed significant attitude change toward cellular phone use while driving (toward being less favorable), whereas the control group had no attitude change. At the one-month follow-up, the benefit of feedback was sustained more so in the experienced driver group than the novice driver group, although both groups still benefited relative to the control conditions.


CONCLUSIONS
Simulation-based feedback training is promising for short-term education in novice drivers but may be more effective in the long-term for drivers with higher levels of experience. Drivers with more experience appear to have a greater, more sustained benefit from the training than novices. Additional research is needed to better tailor this education method toward novice drivers.


CONCLUSIONS
Simulation-based participative education approach through feedback needs to be better tailored toward novice drivers.
Wang
Ying
Y
State Key Laboratory of Automotive Safety and Energy, Department of Industrial Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, P. R. China.
Zhang
Wei
W
Reimer
Bryan
B
Lavallière
Martin
M
Lesch
Mary F
MF
Horrey
William J
WJ
Wu
Su
S
D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000517:prevention & control; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001290:Attitude; D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D040421:Cell Phone / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D030141:Feedback, Psychological; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D014741:Video Recording; D055815:Young Adult