On the measurement of visual distraction potential of in-car activities

Abstract

People use various applications from Instagram to Netflix while driving. Previous literature recognizes the harmful effects of conducting these secondary in-car tasks while driving. As a general discovery, studies indicate an association between secondary in-car task activities and drivers’ visual inattention which is further associated with accidents in traffic. One solution to diminish visual inattention could be to design the user interfaces of the applications to be low-demanding visually and cognitively. However, there is little published data on the exact design factors that could enable such user interface design. There are certain vital issues that complicate studying visual inattention and user interfaces’ distraction potential: there is no commonly agreed definition for driver inattention. The lack of an agreed definition leads to difficulties in operationalizing and measuring visual inattention reliably. To be able to define driver inattention, we should first better understand the attentional demands of driving. A more comprehensive understanding of attentional demands of driving could provide instruments that conquer these issues and enable the measurement of visual inattention and examination of the design factors mitigating drivers’ visual inattention to enhance traffic safety. Hence, this doctoral dissertation aims to clarify a definition of attentive driving, develop a more reliable method to measure visual inattention, and finally, better understand how user interface design factors affect drivers’ visual inattention. This doctoral dissertation makes the following main contributions: a) a suggestion for a working definition of attentive driving, b) an operationalization of visual distraction, c) development of a testing method that assesses tested tasks’ visual distraction potential against a baseline of attentive driving and takes drivers’ individual glancing behaviors into account, and d) an extension of knowledge concerning the effects of user interface design factors on visual distraction potential. These benefit the traffic research community by helping develop a definition for attentive driving and driver inattention and providing a suggestion of how drivers’ visual inattention can be operationalized and measured more reliably. Also, the implications concerning user interface design benefit the automotive industry and designers working within the industry.