Relationship between driving styles and biological behavior of drivers in negative emotional state

This paper explores the links between driving style and the biological behavior of people while driving with dangerous negative emotions (such as anger, anxiety, and fear). It is highly important to study the behavior of humans from varying aspects to discover the factors affecting it. Driving style, as one of the critical aspects of the human factor, and biological behavior, as a factor influencing the performance of individuals, motivate us to examine the relationship between the two. For this purpose, a test was designed to record the biological signal data, namely, the Electrocardiogram (ECG), Electroencephalogram (EEG), Electromyogram (EMG), and Electrodermal activity (EDA), in a driving simulator with driving events prompting negative emotions. The Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory (MDSI) was employed to determine the driving style of participants. Correlation analysis was engaged for data analysis. The results showed, firstly, a significant relationship between the participants’ driving style and their biological behavior and, secondly, the highest correlation between the EEG signal and driving style. Moreover, participants with a nervous and anxious style showed maximum change in biological behavior, while those with a reckless style displayed minimum alterations in biological behavior at the time of unpleasant events during driving. Conduction of such research can help better understand the behavior of different people while facing unpleasant driving events.