The Effects of Dual-Task Interference and Response Strategy on Stop or Go Decisions to Yellow Light Changes

Distractions can interfere with driving by causing central processing bottlenecks. In addition to performance decrements, central processing delays may also impair decision-making during critical driving maneuvers such as stop or go decisions at intersections. It was hypothesized that distractions would delay the stop or go decision leading to more go responses. Participants drove 4 simulated drives and made stop or go decisions at intersections with and without a distracting task. Distractions did not result in more go responses at intersections. Additionally, dual-task interference in braking responses was found to be dependent upon participants’ response strategies. Theoretical implications of response strategy on processing bottlenecks were discussed. Keywords: Driver distraction;