THE EFFECTS OF SMALL DOSES OF ALCOHOL ON A SIMULATED DRIVING TASK

IN AN ATTEMPT TO RELATE SIMULATED AND ACTUAL DRIVING, THE ONLY OPERATOR INPUTS MEASURED WERE THOSE WITH A DEMONSTRABLE RELATIONSHIP TO THOSE INPUTS FOUND IN ACTUAL DRIVING. TWELVE MALE SUBJECTS WERE TESTED UNDER THREE COUNTERBALANCED ALCOHOL DOSE CONDITIONS, NO ALCOHOL, AND TWO DOSES CALCULATED TO ATTAIN BLOOD ALCOHOL CONCENTRATIONS OF .05 AND .10 PERCENT. ACCELERATOR REVERSALS DID NOT DISCRIMINATE BETWEEN THE THREE ALCOHOL GROUPS WHILE TWO STEERING MEASURES WERE SIGNIFICANT SOURCES OF VARIATION. TRACKING SCORES REVEALED NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES FOR THE THREE ALCOHOL GROUPS, ALTHOUGH A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DOSE X SUBJECTS INTERACTION WAS FOUND IN EACH CASE. /HSL/