The longitudinal impact of cognitive speed of processing training on driving mobility.

Purpose: To examine how cognitive speed of processing training affects driving mobility across a 3-year period among older drivers.

Design And Methods: Older drivers with poor Useful Field of View (UFOV) test performance (indicating greater risk for subsequent at-fault crashes and mobility declines) were randomly assigned to either a speed of processing training or a social and computer contact control group. Driving mobility of these 2 groups was compared with a group of older adults who did not score poorly on the UFOV test (reference group) across a 3-year period.

Do older drivers at-risk for crashes modify their driving over time?

Five-year driving habit trajectories among older adults (n = 645) at-risk for crashes were examined. Performance measures included Useful Field of View (UFOV). Motor-Free Visual Perception Test, Rapid Walk, and Foot Tap.

What predicts changes in useful field of view test performance?

The Useful Field of View Test (UFOV) has been used as an examination of age-related changes in visual processing and cognition and as an indicator of everyday performance outcomes, particularly driving, for over 20 years. How UFOV performance changes with age and what may impact such changes have not previously been investigated longitudinally. Predictors of change in UFOV performance over a 5-year period among control group participants (N=690) from the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly (ACTIVE) study were examined.

Predictors of falling in older Maryland drivers: a structural-equation model.

Falls can impair health and reduce quality of life among older adults. Although many factors are related to falling, few analyses examine causal models of this behavior. In this study, factors associated with falling were explored simultaneously using structural-equation modeling.

Development and evaluation of home-based speed-of-processing training for older adults.

Objectives: To develop technical parameters for a videotape-based speed-of-processing training protocol, to evaluate the feasibility of self-administration (experiment 1), and to evaluate the protocol's effectiveness (experiment 2).

Design: A feasibility study (experiment 1) and a pre-post, 4-arm, nonrandomized controlled trial (experiment 2).

Setting: University research center.

The useful field of view test: normative data for older adults.

The Useful Field of View test (UFOV) is increasingly used in clinical and rehabilitation settings. To date there have been no normative data for adjusted performance comparisons across demographically-similar, elderly peers. This study examined demographic and cognitive influences on the UFOV in a sample of 2759 participants (65-94 years of age).

Predictors of driving exposure and avoidance in a field study of older drivers from the state of Maryland.

Using structural equation modeling techniques, this study examines causal models of driving avoidance and exposure among older adults. Prior studies have revealed that past incidence of falls, Useful Field of View (UFOV) test performance, and Trails Making test performance are predictive of subsequent motor vehicle crash involvement [Owsley, C., Ball, K.

Can high-risk older drivers be identified through performance-based measures in a Department of Motor Vehicles setting?

Objectives: To evaluate the relationship between performance-based risk factors and subsequent at-fault motor vehicle collision (MVC) involvement in a cohort of older drivers.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) field sites in Maryland.

The effects of physical activity and sedentary behavior on cognitive health in older adults.

Physical activity has been shown to be positively associated with cognitive health, but the mechanisms underlying the benefits of physical activity on cognitive health are unclear. The present study simultaneously examined two hypotheses using structural equation modeling (SEM). The depression-reduction hypothesis states that depression suppresses cognitive ability and that physical activity alleviates dysphoric mood and thereby improves cognitive ability.

Cumulative meta-analysis of the relationship between useful field of view and driving performance in older adults: current and future implications.

Purpose: Driving is a complex behavior that requires the utilization of a wide range of individual abilities. Identifying assessments that not only capture individual differences, but also are related to older adults' driving performance would be beneficial. This investigation examines the relationship between the Useful Field of View (UFOV) assessment and objective measures of retrospective or concurrent driving performance, including state-recorded accidents, on-road driving, and driving simulator performance.

Reliability and validity of useful field of view test scores as administered by personal computer.

The Useful Field of View test (UFOV(1)) is a measure of processing speed that predicts driving performance and other functional abilities in older adults. In comparison to a number of other visual and cognitive measures, the UFOV measure has consistently been found to be the strongest predictor of motor vehicle crashes of older adults. This measure has valuable applications in that computerized, performance-based measures that are predictive of crashes in the elderly population can provide an objective criterion for determining the need for driver restriction or rehabilitation.

Sensory and cognitive factors influencing functional ability in older adults.

Background: Age-related sensory and cognitive impairments have been related to functional performance in older adults. With regard to cognitive abilities, processing speed in particular may be strongly related to older adults' abilities to perform everyday tasks. Identifying and comparing cognitive correlates of functional performance is particularly important in order to design interventions to promote independence and prevent functional disability.

Speed-of-processing and driving simulator training result in improved driving performance.

Useful field of view, a measure of processing speed and spatial attention, can be improved with training. We evaluated the effects of this improvement on older adults' driving performance. Elderly adults participated in a speed-of-processing training program (N = 48), a traditional driver training program performed in a driving simulator (N = 22), or a low-risk reference group (N = 25).

Obstacles to implementing research outcomes in community settings.

Purpose: In contrast to controlled laboratory- or clinic-based research that can fail to capture the real-world behaviors of older adults, field research offers the best opportunity for ecological validity. However, the tradeoff inherent in field studies is the potential sacrifice of scientific rigor. Applied research presents a unique set of challenges that vary with context.

Transfer of a speed of processing intervention to near and far cognitive functions.

Background: Evidence establishing the potential for modification of cognitive functioning in later adulthood has begun to accumulate.

Objective: The primary goal of the current study was to evaluate, among older adults, the extent to which standardized speed of processing training transfers to similar and dissimilar speeded cognitive measures as well as to other domains of cognitive functioning.

Methods: Ninety-seven older adults (mean age 73.

Useful field of view after traumatic brain injury.

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) survivors often have sensory and cognitive impairments that may interfere with driving ability. The Useful Field of View (UFOV) is a measure of visual information processing that is a good predictor of vehicle crash risk in older adults.

Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the possibility that UFOV is compromised after TBI.