It is widely believed that mood influences driving performance, but there is relatively little empirical data which supports this presumption. This paper reports a study in which the moods of over 100 drivers were measured before they undertook a driving test. Towards the end of the driving test they completed another mood evaluation. The results focus on the impact that taking a driving test has on mood, on the extent to which mood is changed by events which occur during the test, and in particular on the relationship between state and trait aspects of affect and assessed driving performance.
Abstract