Module 2: The Human Factors Review

Summary of Module 2:

• Human factors involved in

driving include psychological
factors, fatigue, emotional
distress, driving distractions
and alcohol and drug use.
• Everyone needs some stress
in their lives, however, it
should be controlled and
individuals should be aware
of how they deal with stress.
• The body responds to stress
with three stages: alarm,
resistance and exhaustion.
• Four methods to address the
onset of stress are physical activity, sharing your feeling of stress with
someone, cooperation instead of confrontation and being aware of your
limits.
• It is vitally important to calm yourself before driving a vehicle, this is the
best deterrent of allowing stress to negatively influence driving behavior.
• Fatigue may cause a phenomenon known as “freeway or highway
hypnosis” in which a driver becomes drowsy or unaware while driving.
• Driving while sleep deprived, driving alone and driving frequently are types
of drivers that are at greater risk of having a motor vehicle crash.
• Truck drivers are one type of driver that are especially susceptible to
fatigue-related crashes.
• To prevent fatigue from affecting your driving it is important to get a good
night’s sleep, bring a passenger on trips so that he/she can share the
driving responsibility, stop about every two hours and avoid alcohol and
other drugs.
• Emotionally distressed drivers are at an increased risk of motor vehicle
crashes because they are not concentrating on the driving task, but are
concentrating on what has them upset.
• Emotionally distressed drivers may exhibit aggressive driving tendencies
that may be manifested by running red lights, running stop signs, not
yielding the right of way or reckless driving.
• Aggressive driving may lead to road rage, when a driver actually acts in a
violent manner toward others.
• Calming techniques should be used if a driver is emotionally distressed
while driving.
• Drivers use four methods to cope with emotional trauma including shock,
numbing, denial; recoil and impact, attribution and resolution.
• Having a good attitude while driving, driving defensively and not letting
stress or hurriedness affect your driving will help drivers to drive safely.
• Risk-taking drivers enjoy the thrill of danger, enjoy impressing passengers
or other drivers, disregard personal safety, try to control situations or
overestimate their ability and justify risks because they are taken in a
“noble” cause.
• Good drivers generally have a good level of attention, accurate
observation, coordinate vehicle speed and direction to the situation
appropriately, are aware of the inherent risks of driving, have a realization
that heavy traffic and the actions of others are beyond their control, have
the ability to let go of perceived personal insults by the actions of other
drivers and are aware that there is nothing out on the road worth dying
over.
• Driving distractions may include but are not limited to using cellular
telephones, shaving, applying makeup, reading books or maps, attention
to non-driving task related issues outside of the vehicle.
• The use of hand-held cellular phones is prohibited in New York unless the
phone is being used for calling 911, calling medical, fire or police
personnel in response to an emergency, operation of an emergency
vehicle in performance of official duties or is a hands-free mobile
telephone, which will allow the user to communicate hands-free.
• Drivers may be fined up to $100 and incur a traffic infraction for violating
the New York Cellular Phone Law.
• Alcohol is a depressant that increases the possibility of motor vehicle
crashes because it slows reflexes, reduces vision and causes people to
lose self-control.
• Effects of alcohol on the central nervous system include impaired
judgment; impaired muscle coordination; decreased peripheral vision,
multiple vision and blurring; dizziness and night vision impairment; slowed
complex reaction time and drowsiness.
• Organs of the body that alcohol affects are the brain, stomach, liver and
vision.
• Prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, depressants, stimulants,
narcotics and hallucinogens are the types of drugs that affect driving.
• The synergistic effect is the event that happens when a person combines
two or more drugs at the same time; each drug compounds the effect of
the other, further altering the driver’s ability to safely operate a motor
vehicle.
• BAC is the abbreviation for the concept of Blood Alcohol Concentration
and is the measurement of the weight of alcohol in your bloodstream per
unit of volume.
• A person may be charged with Driving While Ability Impaired (DWAI) if in
control of a motor vehicle with a BAC of between .05 and .07.
• Alcohol is a depressant that acts as a stimulant, provoking a sensation
similar to euphoria, which makes a person wrongly assess his capabilities
and as a result, taking risks that he/she may not normally take.
• Legal penalties will be incurred for persons that violate the DWI, DWAI
and Zero Tolerance laws in the state of New York.
• The financial consequences of driving under the influence are devastating
if the costs of being charged with DWI are taken into consideration.
• DWI costs may include rehabilitation for the injured, higher insurance and
healthcare costs, criminal charges for the person found guilty of DWI and
the loss of family members and loved ones.
• Monetary costs of DWI include medical costs, work loss (lost productivity),
public service costs, property damage and quality of life costs.
• Impaired drivers may be in areas where bars and nightclubs are located.
• Impaired drivers may or may not be easy to identify, because some of the
behaviors that they exhibit may also be exhibited by drowsy or fatigued
drivers.
• Midnight to 3 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays was the deadliest 3-hour
period in 2006 for impaired drivers.
• Impaired drivers may be found on roadways frequently during evening
hours, holidays and on paydays.
• Alternatives to driving impaired include choosing a designated driver,
spend the night where you drink (at a friend’s house for example), take a
taxi or do not drink alcohol at all.