AgeLab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
Accid Anal Prev. 2010 May;42(3):842-51. doi: 10.1016/j.aap.2009.06.021.
Young adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at higher risk for being involved in automobile crashes. Although driving simulators have been used to identify and understand underlying behaviors, prior research has focused largely on single-task, non-distracted driving. However, in-vehicle infotainment and communications systems often vie for a driver's attention, potentially increasing the risk of collision. This paper explores the impact of secondary tasks on individuals with and without ADHD, a medical condition known to affect the regulation of attention. Data are drawn from a validated driving simulation representing periods before, during, and after participation in a secondary cognitive task. A hands-free phone task was employed in a high stimulus, urban setting and a working memory task during low stimulus, highway driving. Drivers with ADHD had more difficulty on the telephone task, yet did not show an increased decrement in driving performance greater than control participants. In contrast, participants with ADHD showed a larger decline in driving performance than controls during a secondary task in a low demand setting. The results suggest that the interaction of the nature of the driving context and the secondary task has a significant influence on how drivers with ADHD allocate attention and, in-turn, on the relative impact on driving performance. Drivers with ADHD appear particularly susceptible to distraction during periods of low stimulus driving.
患有注意缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）的年轻人发生车祸的风险更高。尽管驾驶模拟器已被用于识别和理解潜在行为，但先前的研究主要集中在单一任务、非分心驾驶上。然而，车内信息娱乐和通信系统往往会争夺驾驶员的注意力，从而增加碰撞的风险。本文探讨了次要任务对患有和不患有 ADHD 的个体的影响，ADHD 是一种已知会影响注意力调节的疾病。数据来自一个经过验证的驾驶模拟，代表了参与次要认知任务前后的时间段。在高刺激的城市环境中使用免提电话任务，在低刺激的高速公路驾驶中使用工作记忆任务。患有 ADHD 的驾驶员在电话任务上遇到更多困难，但驾驶表现的下降程度并不比对照组更大。相比之下，在低需求环境中进行次要任务时，患有 ADHD 的参与者的驾驶表现下降幅度大于对照组。结果表明，驾驶环境和次要任务的性质相互作用，对 ADHD 驾驶员如何分配注意力产生重大影响，从而对驾驶表现产生相对影响。患有 ADHD 的驾驶员在低刺激驾驶期间似乎特别容易分心。
