How precision teaching can shape drivers' lateral control over time

The present work describes a driving simulator experiment aimed at verifying if different feedback systems may have a positive effect on the participants’ driving behaviour in terms of lateral vehicle control over time. Participants performed the same track 4 times: the first time (baseline) no feedback was delivered, whereas the next three times either an auditory or multimodal (that is, visual and auditory) feedback was presented in case of error. About 25% of the participants in the initial sample were tested again after a month without any feedback. The results showed that the positive effect of the feedback with respect to the baseline track in terms of lower standard deviation of lateral position (SDLP), lower mean lateral speed (LS) and lower standard deviation of steering angle (SDSTEER) was maintained over time. Thanks to the precision teaching technique, drivers improved the investigated driving parameters while maintaining a correct position inside the lane.