Aims and background

Anxiety over driving is under-researched in Australia. Studies conducted in New Zealand and France have shown this type of anxiety has negative impacts on mobility, work performance and perceived quality of work as well as perceived quality of life. The aim of this study was to examine these relationships using a sample of drivers in Australia.

Methods

A total of 535 people (average age 25 ± 10 years) completed an online questionnaire assessing level of anxiety over driving, worrisome thoughts about driving and avoidance behaviours. Questions regarding quality of life and work were also included. Respondents were classified into three anxiety groups: extremely (13.5%), moderately (55%) or mildly (31.5%) anxious over driving.

Results

The three groups significantly differed across all measures. For example, driver anxiety negatively impacted work performance and perceived quality of work life. These negative impacts were significantly higher for the extremely anxious group compared to the moderately or mildly anxious group. The largest reported impact of anxiety over driving was on perceived quality of life, with all groups reporting the most impact in this area; and with extremely anxious again having the highest scores. Extremely anxious drivers also reported more frequent negative thoughts about driving and avoidance of driving when possible, when compared to those with mild and moderate anxiety.

Conclusions

These findings highlight the broader detrimental effects of anxiety over driving that may often be overlooked in driving research.

中文翻译：

---

过度焦虑驾驶对自我报告的避免驾驶，工作表现和生活质量的影响

目的和背景

在澳大利亚，对驾驶的焦虑尚未得到充分研究。在新西兰和法国进行的研究表明，这种焦虑对流动性，工作绩效，可感知的工作质量以及可感知的生活质量产生负面影响。这项研究的目的是使用澳大利亚的驾驶员样本研究这些关系。

方法

共有535人（平均年龄25±10岁）完成了在线问卷调查，评估了对驾驶的焦虑程度，对驾驶的忧虑和回避行为。还包括有关生活质量和工作的问题。受访者被分为三类：过度驾驶焦虑（13.5％），中度焦虑（55％）或轻度焦虑（31.5％）。

结果

这三组在所有指标上均存在显着差异。例如，驾驶员的焦虑会对工作绩效和工作生活质量产生负面影响。与中度或轻度焦虑组相比，极度焦虑组的负面影响明显更高。据报告，焦虑对驾驶的最大影响是对感知生活质量的影响，所有群体均报告了对该领域的最大影响；并以极度焦虑再次获得最高分。与轻度和中度焦虑的人相比，极度焦虑的驾驶员还报告了更多关于驾驶和尽可能避免驾驶的负面想法。

结论

这些发现凸显了焦虑对驾驶的更广泛的有害影响，这在驾驶研究中常常被忽视。