Author(s): SAKAGUCHI, Y., OYAMA, Y., NAKANO, T., KAMEOKA, M., MURAYAMA, T., Institution: HOKURIKU UNIVERSITY, Country: JAPAN, Abstract-ID: 1751

INTRODUCTION:
To safely perform physical activities in dynamic environments, adequate motor functions—including muscle strength and postural balance—are critical, along with the ability to perceive the external environment and translate perception into action. Perceptual–motor integration plays a fundamental role in movement safety. As one example of such an environment, its importance is particularly pronounced in automobile driving, a complex perceptual–cognitive–motor task. More than 90% of information acquisition during driving relies on visual input (Hartman, 1970). Our previous work suggests that not only central vision, but also peripheral visual processing may influence driving safety; however, age-related differences during actual driving remain unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate gaze behavior during driving, including peripheral vision, and clarify age-related differences.
METHODS:
Participants included five community-dwelling older adults(66±2.1 years) and five younger adults(21.2±0.8 years), all licensed regular drivers. Driving experiments were conducted in real-world urban environments. Straight single-lane road segments—where accidents involving older drivers are frequent (Traffic Accident Analysis Center, 2011)—were selected for analysis. Gaze behavior was recorded using a wearable eye-tracking system (Gazo Co., Ltd.), measuring fixation duration and gaze location. Peripheral visual engagement was estimated from gaze dispersion patterns, and heatmap analyses visualized fixation distributions. Group differences were examined using independent t-tests.
RESULTS:
Older drivers demonstrated significantly longer fixation durations in the near-field region of their driving lane, with fixation distributions concentrated proximally. They also showed reduced peripheral visual engagement and gaze trajectories characterized by fine-grained, continuous scanning movements. In contrast, younger drivers exhibited longer fixations in the far-field region, broader fixation distributions, and wider peripheral visual engagement, with more saccadic gaze shifts between visual targets.
CONCLUSION:
These findings indicate age-related differences in both fixation allocation and peripheral visual utilization during driving. Younger drivers displayed extensive visual exploration supporting anticipatory hazard perception. Conversely, older drivers’ near-field focus and reduced peripheral monitoring may contribute to delayed hazard detection and perceptual–cognitive errors. This suggests that visual search strategies and visuomotor integration may undergo changes with aging, potentially providing fundamental insights into safe behavior and motor performance in dynamic environments.
[References]
Hartman E. Driver Vision Requirements. SAE Technical Paper 700392, 1970.
Traffic Accident Analysis Center. ITARDA Information Traffic Accident Report No.90, 2021.