Gender differences in driving control of young alcohol-impaired drivers

Abstract

Background: Male and female drivers exhibit different degrees of vehicle control while driving under the influence of alcohol. However, this interaction between alcohol and gender is understudied. The present study examined the effects of different alcohol levels on the driving control of male and female drivers with the help of driving simulator experiments in heterogeneous traffic conditions. Method: Forty young drivers (20 males and 20 females) completed simulated driving at four Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) levels: 0% (control), 0.03%, 0.05% and 0.08%. Driving impairment in vehicle control was measured in terms of average speed, acceleration variability and reaction time of drivers. Repeated-measures ANOVA tests were conducted and regression models were developed for male and female drivers to quantify the effects of BAC levels and driver characteristics on the driving control measures. Results: Significant effects of gender were observed for average speed (p < 0.001) and acceleration variability (p = 0.015) but not for reaction time of drivers (p = 0.891). Further, the effect of BAC was significant in all the three measures of vehicle control (p < 0.001). Driving control improved with increasing age of male drivers while caffeine consumption was observed as an alcohol-antagonizing factor in female drivers. Conclusion: The findings suggest that vehicle control of female drivers is more likely to get affected even at low BAC levels, providing evidence that they belong to critical section of driving community in terms of alcohol-related impairment. The findings may help in discouraging drinking and driving among male and female drivers.