Article

Driving simulator performance was examined in Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation
Enduring Freedom (OIF/OEF) Veterans to objectively evaluate driving abilities
among this cohort who self-report poorer driving safety postdeployment. OIF/OEF
Veterans (n = 25) and age- and education-matched civilian controls (n = 25)
participated in a 30 min driving simulator assessment that measured the frequency
of minor, moderate, and severe driving errors. Frequency of errors in specific
content domains (speed regulation, positioning, and signaling) was also
calculated. All participants answered questions about number of lifetime traffic
"warnings," moving violation tickets, and accidents. Veterans completed the
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Checklist-Military Version. On the driving
simulator assessment, Veterans committed more minor, moderate, severe, and
speeding errors and reported poorer lifetime driving records than the civilian
control group. Exploratory analyses revealed an association between increasing
errors on the driving simulator with increasing symptoms of PTSD, although
statistically this correlation did not reach significance. These findings suggest
that Veterans perform more poorly on an objective evaluation of driving safety
and that the presence of PTSD could be associated with worse performance on this
standardized driving simulator assessment.

Langue : ANGLAIS