Article

Driver distraction is a significant cause of traffic accidents. The
aim of this study is to investigate Electroencephalography (EEG) dynamics in
relation to distraction during driving. To study human cognition under a specific
driving task, simulated real driving using virtual reality (VR)-based simulation
and designed dual-task events are built, which include unexpected car deviations
and mathematics questions. METHODS: We designed five cases with different
stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) to investigate the distraction effects between
the deviations and equations. The EEG channel signals are first converted into
separated brain sources by independent component analysis (ICA). Then,
event-related spectral perturbation (ERSP) changes of the EEG power spectrum are
used to evaluate brain dynamics in time-frequency domains. RESULTS: Power
increases in the theta and beta bands are observed in relation with distraction
effects in the frontal cortex. In the motor area, alpha and beta power
suppressions are also observed. All of the above results are consistently
observed across 15 subjects. Additionally, further analysis demonstrates that
response time and multiple cortical EEG power both changed significantly with
different SOA. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that theta power increases in the
frontal area is related to driver distraction and represents the strength of
distraction in real-life situations.

Langue : ANGLAIS