How defensive driving enhances driving safety: A driving simulator study on drivers' defensive driving behaviors

2026-07-20

AI Summary

This study addresses the unclear mechanisms through which defensive driving enhances road safety. Using a driving simulator, behavioral and eye-tracking data were collected from 82 participants exposed to typical risk scenarios. Participants were grouped based on the frequency of their defensive driving behaviors, enabling between-group and repeated-measures comparisons. The research provides the first systematic quantification of defensive driving characteristics and their risk-mitigation effects: high-defensive drivers demonstrated earlier hazard detection, stronger vehicle control responses—including greater acceleration/deceleration magnitudes, lower average speeds, and larger yaw angles—as well as shorter and more frequent fixations. These behaviors collectively led to a significant reduction in collision risk. The findings offer empirical support and a behavioral modeling foundation for integrating human-like defensive strategies into autonomous driving systems.

Abstract

Defensive driving is widely recognized as an advanced driving skill. However, whether and how defensive driving affects driving safety remains insufficiently investigated. This study examines the behavioral characteristics of defensive driving, its impact on driving safety, and the underlying mechanisms. First, defensive driving is defined regarding operational timing and application scenario. Then, 82 participants are recruited for driving simulator experiments, with their behavioral and eye movement data being collected. Following the experiments, participants are categorized into groups based on the frequency of defensive driving behaviors exhibited. Finally, both inter-group and inter trial comparisons are performed on the experimental data. Experimental results demonstrate that in the inter-group comparison, the high defensive driving capability group exhibits higher acceleration and deceleration magnitudes, lower average speeds, and larger average absolute yaw angles compared to the low capability group, alongside shorter fixation durations and reduced fixation frequencies. Moreover, we observe that these participants tend to initiate defensive or evasive actions earlier, resulting in lower scenario risk. Regarding the inter-trial comparison, we observe similar trends exclusively in the low capability group, whereas most metrics show no significant differences between Trial 1 and Trial 2 in the high capability group. These results reveal that drivers possessing defensive driving capabilities tend to execute more intense driving maneuvers and identify risks and take action earlier, thereby enhancing driving safety. Findings support the promotion of defensive driving and provide a basis for relevant training programs. Meanwhile, they offer insights for the training of autonomous driving algorithms with defensive driving capabilities.

Problem

• defensive driving
• driving safety
• driving behavior
• risk perception
• driving simulator

Innovation

• defensive driving
• driving simulator
• eye movement tracking
• risk anticipation
• autonomous driving training