Citation

Shinar D. Proc. Am. Assoc. Automot. Med. Annu. Conf. 1978; 22(2): 81-91.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1978, Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

An evaluation of a fully automated battery of driving related vision tests was conducted on 890 licensed drivers ranging in age from 17 to 89. The tests measured static central visual acuity under conditions of optimal illumination, low levels of illumination, and glare; dynamic visual acuity, visual field, movement detection threshold in the central and peripheral fields, and visual search-and-scan ability. In a previous paper the test- retest reliability of the vision tests was discussed. The present paper summarizes the main findings of this study with particular emphasis on the relationship between driver accident involvement and driver performance on the vision tests. Regression analysis regressing performance on the vision test against accident involvement yielded multiple correlations ranging from .09 to .30 - depending on the particular driver age group and the accident condition (day versus night). The results indicated that : 1. dynamic visual acuity and static acuity under low levels of illumination were the two tests that were most consistently related to accidents in general, as well as to driver-caused and vision- related accidents in particular. 2. poor static acuity under low levels of illumination was specifically associated with over-involvement in night-time accidents. 3. the third most relevant vision test was sensitively to central angular movement. 4. When broken down by age groups, it was found that no single vision test was significantly associated with accident involvement for all age groups but each one of the vision tests was significantly associated with accident involvement for one or more of the age groups. Further analyses indicated that additional changes in equipment and procedures are necessary before the battery can be used in the driver licensing environment.