An investigation of the effect of sleepiness, drowsy driving, and lifestyle on vehicle crashes

Abstract Purpose The current study investigated the impact of lifestyle and sleep-related factors on the probability of car crash involvement in a country that lacks good crash and driver history data. This is considered to be one of the few research studies exploring crash risk on the basis of the driver’s lifestyle, using a holistic approach of lifestyle instead of individual lifestyle characteristics. Method A sample of 1366 non-professional drivers aged 19–65, from the broader Athens area as well as from other cities of Greece, was studied through personal interviews. The questionnaire included items about the drivers’ socio-demographic characteristics, their lifestyle, the incidents of fatigue and falling asleep while driving, the frequency of daytime sleepiness and the symptoms of sleep disorders. Data analysis was undertaken by principal components analysis and multinomial logistic regression. Results Among the five lifestyle patterns (Amusement, Culture, Religion, Sport, Work) that emerged through the principal component analysis, only the lifestyle of Religion was found to be negatively associated with the risk of causing car crashes. The frequency of fatigue and fall asleep incidents while driving was shown to increase the risk of causing car crashes. The symptoms of sleep disorders were also found to increase the car crash risk but only in the case of a single crash. On the contrary, the frequency of daytime sleepiness was found to reduce the likelihood of causing a car crash. Discussion Road safety campaigns should target drowsy-prone drivers. The role of lifestyle in driving behaviour should be further explored.