Superior temporal sulcus and social cognition in dangerous drivers

Task and Resting-State Functional Connectivity Predict Driving Violations

Aberrant driving behaviors cause accidents; however, there is a lack of understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying these behaviors. To address this issue, a task and resting-state functional connectivity was used to predict aberrant driving behavior and associated personality traits. The study included 29 right-handed participants with driving licenses issued for more than 1 year. During the functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment, participants first recorded their resting state and then watched a driving video while continuously rating the risk and speed on each block. Functional connectome-based predictive modeling was employed for whole brain tasks and resting-state functional connectivity to predict driving behavior (violation, error, and lapses), sensation-seeking, and impulsivity. Resting state and task-based functional connectivity were found to significantly predict driving violations, with resting state significantly predicting lapses and task-based functional connectivity showing a tendency to predict errors. Conversely, neither impulsivity nor sensation-seeking was associated with functional connectivity. The results suggest a significant association between aberrant driving behavior, but a nonsignificant association between impulsivity and sensation-seeking, and task-based or resting state functional connectivity. This could provide a deeper understanding of the neural processing underlying reckless driving that may ultimately be used to prevent accidents.

A neuroscientific evaluation of driver rehabilitation: Functional neuroimaging demonstrates the effectiveness of empathy induction in altering brain responses during social information processing

An alarming number of traffic-related deaths occur each year on European roads alone. Figures reveal that the vast majority of road-traffic accidents are caused by drivers themselves, and so further improvements in road safety require developments in driver training and rehabilitation. This study evaluated a novel approach to driver rehabilitation–specifically, empathy induction as a means of changing attitudes towards risky driving. To assess the effectiveness of this method, the present study employed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to compare brain function before and after a short program of empathy induction in 27 drivers whose licenses had been revoked after serious traffic offences (rehabilitated drivers [RDs]). In an extension of our previous research, we first assessed whether neural responses to empathy-eliciting social stimuli changed in these RDs. In order to isolate the neurophysiological effects of empathy induction from any other potential influences, we compared these RDs to a sample of 27 age-, handedness- and driving experience-matched control drivers (CDs) who had no exposure to the program. We then performed dual-fMRI “hyperscanning” to evaluate whether empathy induction changed brain responses during real-world social interactions among drivers; namely, during co-operative and/or competitive exchanges. Our data reveal that RDs exhibited weaker brain responses to socio-emotional stimuli compared with CDs prior to the program, but this difference was reversed after empathy induction. Moreover, we observed differences between pre- and post-program assessments in patterns of brain responses in RDs elicited during competitive social exchanges, which we interpret to reflect a change in their proclivity to react to the perceived wrong-doing of other road users. Together, these findings suggest that empathy induction is an effective form of driver rehabilitation, and the utility of neuroscientific techniques for evaluating and improving rehabilitation programs.

Effect of exposure to aggressive stimuli on aggressive driving behavior at pedestrian crossings at unmarked roadways

BACKGROUND

Aggressive driving, influenced by the proneness of driving aggression, angry state and provoking situation, is adversely affecting traffic safety especially in developing countries where pedestrians frequently cross an unmarked crosswalk. Exposure to aggressive stimuli causes driving anger and aggressive driving behaviors, but the exposure effect on higher and lower aggression drivers and their cumulative changes under successive exposures need more investigation.

OBJECTIVES

An experiment was conducted to examine (1) driving behaviors of individuals with higher and lower aggressive driving traits when approaching pedestrian crossings at unmarked roadways with and without aggressive provocation; and (2) cumulative changes of driving performance under repeated provocations.

METHOD

We conducted a driving simulator study with 50 participants. Trait of aggressive driving served as a between-subjects variable: participants with an Aggressive Driving Scale (ADS) total score of 30 or more (for men) or 23 or more (for women) were regarded as higher aggressive drivers; lower aggressive drivers were those individuals whose ADS total scores were 21 or less (for men) or 13 or less (for women). Exposure to aggressive stimuli (provoked vs. non-provoked condition) served as a within-subjects variable. Several aspects of the participants' minimum driving speed, lateral distance from a simulated pedestrian, lateral deviation, and subjective measures were collected.

RESULTS

We found that drivers with higher aggressive driving traits were more likely to feel irritated and fail to give way for pedestrians and drove closer to pedestrians when exposed to sustained honking and improper passing compared to the non-provoked condition. This trait×state interaction only occurred when pedestrians crossed the street from the right roadway edge line. In addition, we observed an accumulation effect of exposure to aggressive stimuli on driver's aggressive behaviors at pedestrian crossings.

CONCLUSIONS

Environmental design, law enforcement, and educational campaign may have practical value for reducing pedestrian and driver conflicts at unmarked roadways.

Negativity Bias in Dangerous Drivers

The behavioral and cognitive characteristics of dangerous drivers differ significantly from those of safe drivers. However, differences in emotional information processing have seldom been investigated. Previous studies have revealed that drivers with higher anger/anxiety trait scores are more likely to be involved in crashes and that individuals with higher anger traits exhibit stronger negativity biases when processing emotions compared with control groups. However, researchers have not explored the relationship between emotional information processing and driving behavior. In this study, we examined the emotional information processing differences between dangerous drivers and safe drivers. Thirty-eight non-professional drivers were divided into two groups according to the penalty points that they had accrued for traffic violations: 15 drivers with 6 or more points were included in the dangerous driver group, and 23 drivers with 3 or fewer points were included in the safe driver group. The emotional Stroop task was used to measure negativity biases, and both behavioral and electroencephalograph data were recorded. The behavioral results revealed stronger negativity biases in the dangerous drivers than in the safe drivers. The bias score was correlated with self-reported dangerous driving behavior. Drivers with strong negativity biases reported having been involved in mores crashes compared with the less-biased drivers. The event-related potentials (ERPs) revealed that the dangerous drivers exhibited reduced P3 components when responding to negative stimuli, suggesting decreased inhibitory control of information that is task-irrelevant but emotionally salient. The influence of negativity bias provides one possible explanation of the effects of individual differences on dangerous driving behavior and traffic crashes.

Connectivity of Superior Temporal Sulcus During Target Detection

Abstract. The aim of the current research was to study functional connectivity (FC) of the right superior temporal sulcus (rSTS) during visual target stimulus processing. This structure is presumed to be crucial in social cognition, but evidently participates in target detection as well. Twenty subjects participated in functional magnetic resonance examination for studying FC. We used psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analysis of data acquired during the visual oddball task. During the visual oddball task rSTS had increased connectivity bilaterally with structures involved in memory operations (mesiotemporal cortices and basal ganglia) and evaluative processing related to decision making (left anterior cingulate cortex). Moreover, we revealed decreased connectivity of rSTS with structures involved in attentional processes (right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and the posterior area with bilateral parietal cortex). Based on our results we hypothesize that in the detection of rare events, during visual information processing, rSTS is involved within neuronal networks related to attention, but also at later stages of stimuli processing.