Driving Simulator Could Reduce Crash Risk for Teens With ADHD: Study

Getting behind the wheel of a car is a rite of passage for many young people, but it’s also often a safety risk. Teenagers are four times as likely to be in a car crash as adult drivers, according to the National Institutes of Health, and the likelihood of an accident is even higher for teens with ADHD. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is “an ongoing pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity interfering with functioning or development,” per the NIH. Those with an ADHD diagnosis are twice as likely to be in a crash as neurotypical teens, and parents don’t have many options for reducing that risk beyond delaying driving. Researchers set out to change that with a driving simulator program aimed at reducing the number of long glances away from the roadway. Training participants used computer and console-based driving simulators that discouraged them from multitasking and looking away from the screen. And, per a recent study, it proved to be a success: In the year after training, the teens had a nearly 40% lower crash or near-crash risk when compared to a group that didn’t use the simulators.

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