ABSTRACT

Objective : The purpose of study is to prove the validity of a computer-based situational driving awareness task developed to evaluate the cognitive functions related with driving after a brain injury. Methods : For this purpose, 73 patients (CVA, TBI) participated in the situation awareness test, and neuropsychological cognitive assessment tools were applied. The participants were evaluated based on a ‘driving situational awareness task’ and Mini-Mental State Examination for Korean (MMSE-K), their working memory, and a coding subtest on the Korean Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Ⅳ (K-WAIS-Ⅳ) in order to verify the concurrent validity. The patients participated in a Star Cancellation Test and Trail Making Test A, B (TMT A, B). Experts in driving situational awareness, a loss adjuster, and occupational therapists participated in verifying the content validity. Results : The results were as follows. The correlation between the coding subtest in K-WAIS-Ⅳ and the ‘ driving situational awareness task’ was the highest. The best cognitive assessment tool predicting the situational awareness was the coding subtest. The TMT A, B and Star Cancellation Test are related with the driving situation awareness task. Conclusion : A ‘driving situational awareness task’ is appropriate in evaluating cognitive functions related with driving performance. These results will support occupational therapists in their plans to conduct a cognitive assessment related to situation awareness while driving.