Baltes and Baltes’ “selective optimisation with compensation” (SOC) model is pertinent to driving but evidence about the use of compensation using longitudinal designs is scarce. Therefore, we sought to determine if older drivers reduced their engagement in distracting behaviors while driving, over a six-year period.
We used data captured over several annual assessments from a cohort of 583 drivers aged 70 and over to determine if their engagement in 12 distracting behaviors (e.g., listening to the radio, talking with passengers) declined over time. We adjusted our multivariable model for several potential confounders of the association between our outcome variable and time.
Overall, and after adjustment for potential confounders, the participants reduced their engagement in distracting behaviors over the study period (OR = 0.96, 95% CI = 0.95-0.97). Baseline age was negatively associated with engagement in distracting behaviors (OR = 0.95, 95% CI = 0.94-0.96). Men engaged in more distracting behaviors than women (OR = 1.15, 95% CI = 1.03-1.27), as did participants living in the largest urban centers compared to participants living in the smallest areas (OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 1.04-1.41). The number of kilometers driven per year (for every 10,000 km) was positively associated with the proportion of distracting behaviors drivers engaged in (OR = 1.13, 95% CI = 1.08-1.19).
Drivers in our cohort reduced their engagement in distracting behaviors over the study period. This suggests that older drivers adjust their driving over time, which aligns with age-related theories and models about compensation.