This paper describes how senior citizens comprise the fastest growing segment of our population. Compared to previous generations, current senior citizens are healthier, more active, and more likely to hold a driver's license. Of course, the process of aging takes a toll, and for many individuals the effects of aging eventually interfere with normal daily activities, especially driving. A key challenge to behavioral science, as well as gerontology, is to develop conditions favorable to both the continuation of independent mobility and the optimization of public safety. The paper describes how the effects of age often take the form of environmental interventions, which in the context of driving, could include improved visibility of signs and road delineation at night. Recent efforts also focus on methods to avoid, minimize, or reverse age-related losses of an individual's capacities. An part of the second strategy is to advise individuals about appropriate precautions or restriction of activities in view of their changing sensory and cognitive capabilities.
Abstract