RESEARCH
The majority of studies documenting ADHD-related driving problems have focused on adult drivers with ADHD. Since adolescent drivers are 4 times more likely to be involved in a crash than drivers over age 20 (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 2009), there is a need for research examining the combined risk of being an adolescent driver and having an ADHD diagnosis. Moreover, many studies with adults have simply documented differences between those with and without ADHD on various driving outcomes providing limited information about why individuals with ADHD are at increased risk for poor driving. My research program addresses this limitation by examining why adolescents with ADHD experience driving problems.
Visual Attention and Teen Drivers with ADHD
We use mobile eye tracking technology to examine visual attention of adolescents with ADHD during simulated driving. We have found that visual inattention, defined as looking away for more than 2.5 seconds, explains the relationship between having ADHD and poor driving in the simulator (mediation). This work has been published in high quality journals such as JAMA Pediatrics, Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, and Journal of Attention Disorders.
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Driver's License and Teens with ADHD: A Qualitative Study
In our efforts to recruit novice drivers (16-17 year olds) with ADHD we found that adolescent drivers with ADHD were obtaining their license for the first time at much later ages than their peers without ADHD. We published in Journal of Attention Disorders that obtaining their license did not protect adolescent drivers with ADHD from experiencing driving problems as they still reported having been involved in significantly more crashes and received more citations than their peers.
Intrigued by this phenomenon, our lab is conducting focus groups with teens with ADHD and their parents to better understand how families of adolescents with ADHD navigate the licensure process and make decisions regarding driving. Focus groups are audio and video recorded, transcribed and coded for themes using qualitative methods. We are currently in the process of obtaining IRB approval from SLU to conduct this research.
Intrigued by this phenomenon, our lab is conducting focus groups with teens with ADHD and their parents to better understand how families of adolescents with ADHD navigate the licensure process and make decisions regarding driving. Focus groups are audio and video recorded, transcribed and coded for themes using qualitative methods. We are currently in the process of obtaining IRB approval from SLU to conduct this research.
Sluggish Cognitive Tempo and Driving
Because my research has demonstrated that inattention is involved in ADHD-related driving deficits, I am interested in exploring the various components of inattention, including the sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT), and its effects on driving behavior. SCT is reflected in behaviors such as excessive daydreaming, drowsiness, and slow processing of information, that are likely to impact driving performance, but this has yet to be empirically evaluated.
In collaboration with pediatric sleep expert, Dr. Dean Beebe, we have collected preliminary data examining the impact of sleep patterns and sluggish cognitive tempo on adolescent simulated driving. Data collection is now complete. Data analyses are underway.
In addition, I am co-leading a multi-site effort involving five universities in which we aim to validate a new self-report measure of SCT (Adult Concentration Inventory; stephen.becker.weebly.com) in a sample of college students. We are also collecting self-report driving behavior and outcome data as part of this study.
In collaboration with pediatric sleep expert, Dr. Dean Beebe, we have collected preliminary data examining the impact of sleep patterns and sluggish cognitive tempo on adolescent simulated driving. Data collection is now complete. Data analyses are underway.
In addition, I am co-leading a multi-site effort involving five universities in which we aim to validate a new self-report measure of SCT (Adult Concentration Inventory; stephen.becker.weebly.com) in a sample of college students. We are also collecting self-report driving behavior and outcome data as part of this study.