As more and more grey nomads head north in search of winter warmth, no doubt the usual jokes about the way we drive will begin to do the rounds.
Of course, it is understandable up to a point that people get frustrated when they get stuck behind a relatively slow moving convoy of caravans or motorhomes … but that’s about volume of traffic , not about driving skills, isn’t it? … and safety and moving at a pace we are comfortable with should always be paramount.
And, anyway, what do those young whipper snappers flashing heir lights behind us know? We were on the roads when they were still in their nappies!
But …. Gggggulp … a new study has revealed that older drivers aren’t nearly as good behind the wheel as they reckon they are.
Queensland University of Technology analysed the ability and the driving confidence of a group of 98 men and women aged between 65 and 85 … and the results ain’t pretty.
The participants in the study, with an average age of 71 and with an average of 51 years of driving experience, were asked to self-rate their driving ability and to react to computer-simulated potential road hazards.
“The older they were, the less well they did on this task,” said QUT neuropsychologist Professor, Karen Sullivan. “In a nutshell, people weren’t as good at driving as they thought they were, and this tells us that older drivers are not necessarily reliable judges of their own driving ability.”
Eeek!
Participants had to rate their driving confidence and how well they avoided dangerous situations when driving at night or in the rain.
“Our analysis showed little relationship between the participants’ performance on the hazard perception test and the ratings they gave themselves,” Prof Sullivan told the Courier-Mail. “Decreases in the ability to perceive potential hazards were not matched by a reduction in confidence in the ability to handle difficult driving conditions nor by avoiding these many potentially dangerous driving situations.”
Participants aged 65-74 had a mean response time of 3.5 seconds and those aged 75-84 had a significantly higher mean response time. And before you all ask, there were no gender differences in hazard perception.
As things stand, drivers aged over 75 are currently required to undergo a medical check which is overseen by their GP. They must also carry a medical certificate flagging any underlying conditions when they drive. However, Prof Sullivan says the study results might force a rethink into government policy on older drivers, particularly with an ageing population.
“It’s starting a discussion on whether relying on self-assessment is a good thing,” she said, adding that it might also be worth offering older drivers special training programs.
It is probably no surprise to learn that the study also found some participants were more likely to listen to their GP’s opinion on their driving safety rather than family members.
Problems with eyesight, physical, cognitive disabilities and old age are main factors affecting elderly people’s driving ability.
