Riding Along In My Automobile: Musically-Induced Emotions and Driving Behaviour

人们日益认识到，驾驶员的情绪状态、态度和意识是造成严重交通事故的主要原因，是造成年轻人死亡的最大原因，给他们的家庭和社区造成了复合损失。自20世纪30年代汽车音响问世以来，司机们就一直把音乐作为刺激和分散注意力的工具，而自20世纪60年代以来，音乐技术变得更加广泛。这说明，虽然目前有很多研究致力于了解一系列车内干扰，如移动的电话和卫星导航设备，但相对缺乏针对性的研究，以检查音乐带来的情绪状态对驾驶行为和表现的影响。实验室测试发现，音乐可以干扰和塑造心理处理。值得注意的是，所讨论的影响在很大程度上取决于正在执行的任务，以及执行它的人。在这个项目中，我们的目标是调查通过音乐诱导的情绪状态对驾驶行为和性能在一系列场景中的影响。其中一些影响可能是积极的-例如，刺激疲劳的驾驶员-而其他影响可能是消极的，例如导致前方道路分心。这项研究将解决一些问题：在什么样的驾驶条件下，音乐引起的情绪会影响性能？哪种音乐可能会影响司机、乘客和其他道路使用者的安全？音乐是否以任何方式提高警觉性或驾驶性能？这种影响对年轻人和老年人，对男性和女性是否相似？布鲁内尔大学伦敦与国家交通研究实验室（TRL），保险公司Direct Line PLC和邓迪科学中心（年度邓迪科学节的组织者）建立了合作伙伴关系。该方案需要一系列创新的研究，旨在探讨情绪和态度对司机的影响。这些研究将在一个最先进的驾驶模拟器中进行，该模拟器基于一辆经过改装的公路车。复杂的测量方法包括运动传感器、眼动捕捉系统、大脑监测器、专家访谈和驾驶性能评估，重点是准确性、决策以及对关键和意外事件的及时反应。该团队由Costas Karageorghis博士和TRL的Nick Reed教授组成。二十年来，Karageorghis领导了国际知名的研究，研究音乐在各种体育活动环境中的影响，从医疗保健到健身房锻炼。Karageorghis和他的科学家同事们开发了一种实验和理论范式来解释音乐的情感和激励力量，他们的目标是将这种专业知识应用于一个高度流行的社会空间，在这个空间中，风险的考虑是至关重要的，即公共道路。在这两种情况下，音乐都被用作一种分散注意力的形式，一种改善情绪的手段，以及一种刺激。直接线路PLC和年度邓迪科学中心都为该项目提供了传播机会，该项目将使驾车的公众参与新的发现。这项新颖的研究计划经过精心设计，旨在解决与驾驶心理学相关的基本问题，旨在帮助政策制定者，同时为安全指南，产品开发和驾驶员教育提供支持。随着音乐在拥有汽车的体验中扮演着如此普遍的角色，特别是在年轻人中，对音乐改变驾驶行为的方式进行正式和揭示性的调查是及时的。最终目的是提高公众认识，激发辩论，促进改善道路安全，从而在预防事故及其相关伤亡方面发挥间接作用。

The emotional states, attitudes and awareness of drivers is increasingly being acknowledged as the principal cause of serious traffic accidents; the largest cause of fatality among young adults with a compound cost to their families and communities. Drivers have listened to music as stimulant and distraction since the early days of car audio in the 1930s, and more widely since the 1960s when the technology became far more widely available. It is telling that, whilst there is currently much research effort directed at understanding a range of in-car distractions such as mobile phones and sat-nav devices, there has been a relative absence of targeted research examining the effects of the emotional states brought about through music on driving behaviour and performance.Laboratory tests have found that music can interfere with and shape mental processing. Significantly, the effects in question are very much dependent on the task being performed, and the person performing it. In this project, we aim to investigate the effects of emotional states induced through music on driving behaviour and performance across a range of scenarios. Some of these effects may be positive - for instance, stimulating an otherwise tired driver - whilst others may be negative, such as causing a distraction from the road ahead. The research will address a number of questions: Under what driving conditions do musically-induced emotions influence performance? Which kinds of music are likely to impact upon the safety of drivers, passengers, and other road users? Does music improve alertness or driving performance in any way? Are such effects similar for the young and the old, and for both males and females?Brunel University London has formed a partnership with the national Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), insurers Direct Line PLC, and the Dundee Science Centre (organisers of the annual Dundee Science Festival). The programme entails an innovative sequence of studies aiming to explore the effects of emotions and attitudes on drivers. The studies will take place in a state-of-the-art driving simulator based around a modified road car. The sophisticated battery of measures includes motion sensors, an eye-movement capture system, brain monitors, expert interviews, and driving performance assessments focussing on accuracy, decision-making, and the timely response to critical and unexpected events. The team consists of Dr Costas Karageorghis alongside the TRL's Professor Nick Reed. For two decades, Karageorghis has led internationally-renowned research into the effects of music in various physical activity contexts from healthcare to gymnasia-based exercise. Having developed an experimental and theoretical paradigm to account for music's emotional and motivational power, Karageorghis and his fellow scientists aim to apply this expertise in a highly prevalent social space in which considerations of risk are paramount, that of the public road. In both contexts, music is used as a form of distraction, a means to improve emotions, and a stimulus. Both Direct Line PLC and the annual Dundee Science Centre are providing dissemination opportunities for the project, which will engage the driving public with the new findings. This novel programme of research has been meticulously designed to address fundamental questions connected to driving psychology with the aim of aiding policy makers, while feeding in to safety guidelines, product development and driver education. With music playing such a ubiquitous role in the experience of car ownership, especially among the young, formal and revealing investigation of the way that music alters driving behaviour is timely. The ultimate aim is to prime public awareness and stimulate debate, contribute towards improvements in road safety, and thus play an indirect role in preventing accidents and their associated casualties.