Enhanced Postural Stability Following Driver Training Is Associated With Positive Effects in Vehicle Kinematics During Cornering

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of a specific post-license driver training program on postural stability and vehicle kinematics during cornering. Inertial forces experienced during driving can perturb a driver's posture, which may in turn diminish a driver's perceptual sensitivity and corresponding control actions. A trainee group (n=21) and control group (n=12) participated in the study. The trainee group participated in a 2-day driver training program that included instruction on how to enhance perceptual sensitivity, postural stability, and vehicle kinematics during common driving maneuvers, including cornering. Postural stability and vehicle kinematics were assessed during cornering maneuvers performed on a closed-circuit track using an instrumented vehicle prior to and following training. Trainee drivers experienced enhanced postural stability and reduced the magnitude and onset of peak vehicle lateral accelerations following training. Prior to training, drivers who were more posturally unstable tended to experience higher lateral vehicle accelerations, and drivers with the biggest improvements in postural stability following training tended to experience the greatest reductions in lateral accelerations of the vehicle. Training led to changes in postural stability that were associated with reduced lateral accelerations during cornering. The reduction in lateral accelerations following training in the present study indicates a greater dynamic margin of safety for cornering. Overall findings suggest that the driver training programs produced beneficial effects on cornering kinematics and that these effectswere associated with enhanced postural stability.