Individual differences in stress and fatigue in two field studies of driving

This paper reports the findings of two field studies of Australian drivers in which individual differences in stress and fatigue were investigated. In the first study, 58 professional drivers completed measures of mood, fatigue and other subjective stress state measures, before and after performing a prolonged driving trip. The results indicated that the scales were sensitive to increased fatigue following the driving trip, and correlated appropriately with Fatigue Proneness, a driver stress trait. In the second study, 104 non-professional drivers completed identical subjective stress state measures as the professional drivers, before and after performing a driving trip. Drivers completed a measure of driving-related stress traits, the Driver Stress Inventory (DSI), and a measure of coping, the Driving Coping Questionnaire (DCQ). Both measures were predictive of state response to driving, and the association between Fatigue Proneness and post-drive fatigue found in the first study was replicated. Findings from these studies suggest that fatigue and stress reactions to driving are psychometrically distinct, but may have some common antecedents, such as use of emotion-focused coping. The studies confirm the importance of fatigue and stress as potential safety problems, but also highlight the role of individual differences in response to the demands of driving.