The Impact of UFOV4 and Visual Acuity on Adolescent Visual Response to Safety Critical Events in a Driving Simulator

Kaiden D. Kennedy, BS
Benjamin McManus, PhD
Despina Stavrinos, PhD

Motor Vehicle Collisions (MVCs) are the leading cause of death and injury among adolescents in the US. To recognize safety critical events (SCEs), drivers must not only use their central vision, but also their peripheral vision. When using both central and peripheral vision, cognitive tasks can be successfully performed in a Useful Field of View (UFOV) paradigm. The UFOV task measures processing speed, divided attention, and selective attention. UFOV performance has been linked to crash involvement in older adults and those with various medical conditions, as well as simulated MVCs in young adults. This study examined whether UFOV was a predictive measure of visual recognition of SCEs when combined with Visual Acuity (VA), the current visual screening tool used for obtaining driving licensure in a sample of adolescents.

As part of a larger study examining driving attention, 190 adolescents (Mage=17.12 years, SD=1.98; 53% female) provided UFOV assessment (subtests 1-4), VA measurement, Trails tests A and B, and drove in a high-fidelity driving simulator. Licensed adolescents (n=81) were enrolled within 2 weeks of receiving their driver’s license. Unlicensed adolescents (n=109) had no prior driving experience. During the simulated 7-mile drive, participants encountered five SCEs (e.g., vehicle/pedestrian suddenly nearing driver’s pathway). Visual reaction time and glance length to the SCEs were assessed with eye tracking within the simulator vehicle.

Regressing visual reaction time on licensure status (licensed, unlicensed), gender (male, female), SCE type (vehicle, pedestrian), VA (20/25 or better, 20/30 or poorer), Trails (B – A time difference), UFOV 4 (Selective Attention 2), UFOV 4 by licensure interaction, and UFOV 4 by VA interaction indicated poorer UFOV 4 scores were associated with slower visual reaction time (F = 2.04, p < .01).This effect was moderated by VA, such that only those with VA 20/30 or poorer displayed slower reaction time as a function of poorer UFOV 4 scores (t = 3.30, p < .01). Although licensed participants displayed significantly faster visual reaction times (F = 6.2, p = .01), UFOV 4’s effect on visual reaction time was not dependent upon licensure status.

UFOV selective attention may be predictive of some visual behavior in adolescent drivers, and this appears to depend in part on the adolescent’s VA. Since VA alone has not been directly associated with MVCs or hazard detection in adolescents, further investigation is needed to determine UFOV’s role in adolescent visual behavior while driving. Future research should include adolescents of wider ranging VA scores to examine the relationship between UFOV 4 and VA on visual glance reaction time and to better examine the predictive ability of UFOV in adolescent drivers.

1. The effects of UFOV4 and Visual Acuity on visual reaction time in adolescents.
2. The difference in effectiveness of UFOV testing between adolescents and older adults.
3. Further recommendations in determining fitness to drive for adolescents.