| Driving is a task that requires a variety of physical and mental abilities. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between demographic characteristics, health, prescription medication use, alcohol and drug use, cognition, psychiatric illness and automobile driving behaviors in a community sample of adults. The main hypotheses are to investigate which factors are associated with self-regulation of driving habits and which factors are associated with the occurrence of adverse driving events. Self-regulation of driving habits includes cessation of driving, avoiding driving at night, in bad weather, during rush hour, and a general reduction in miles driven. Adverse driving events refer to crashes and moving violations.; The data for this study were collected as part of the Epidemiological Catchment Area (ECA) program, sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health. The ECA was a large-scale epidemiological study of mental disorders carried out in five cities in the United States. For the present study, data are from the Baltimore 15-year follow-up household survey and the office visit interviews, gathered between 1994 and 1998. The household surveys were conducted by trained lay-interviewers, in which socio-demographic characteristics, a psychiatric diagnostic instrument (Diagnostic Interview Schedule), brief cognitive tests, and health utilization questions were included. The office visit interviews were conducted by lay-interviewers who administered cognitive testing, and a psychiatrist performed a psychological evaluation.; Analyses showed that age, education, vision impairment, depression, prescription medication use, illicit drug use, and alcohol abuse were significantly associated with the occurrence of adverse events. These results were not confounded by socio-demographic characteristics or miles driven. Analyses also revealed that age, gender, education, ethnicity, history of seizures, vision impairment, distress, depression, illicit drug use, alcohol abuse, cognitive performance, and psychiatric illness were associated with self-regulation of driving habits. These results were not confounded by socio-demographic characteristic.; There are some limitations of this study that should be considered when interpreting the results. The data for this study consisted of a large community sample of adults living in Baltimore. Non-response, loss to follow-up, and other missing data may be the source of bias or error. There is also a question of the generalizability of results due to these sample selection biases. The outcome measures for this study were based entirely on self-report information. Actual state motor vehicle records were not available at the time of this study. In addition, a central limitation stems from the cross-sectional nature of the study, implying a need for longitudinal studies to confirm these results.; In sum, this study provides information about high-risk drivers and self-regulation of driving habits in order to avoid adverse driving events. The greatest strength of this study was the inclusion of information regarding self-regulation of driving habits. Self-regulation can confound the relationship between risk factors and adverse events. The identification of high-risk drivers and understanding self-regulation is important for treatment, rehabilitation, and counseling high-risk drivers and their families. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
