Using a Driving Simulator to Train Teens Swerving Strategies to Reduce Vehicle Collisions

Abstract

Traditionally, teens are taught procedures to use during hazardous situations (e.g., when encountering an obstacle and needing to swerve around it). In most driver education programs these procedures are taught through lecture; however, this has not proven to be effective. This study will utilize a similar lecture on the skill of avoiding obstacles, and teens will then train in a high-fidelity driving simulator. Participants will be divided into three training groups: (1) Swerving Practice, in which teens practice steering in scenarios that require swerving, (2) Situation Recognition, in which teens react to the same scenarios, but respond only with a button press, and (3) No Practice, in which participants read verbal descriptions of the same scenarios. Participants will then be tested in scenarios requiring swerving maneuvers. It is expected that teens in the Swerving Practice condition will yield the fastest reaction times and the fewest errors.