Drivers often have `time-gap experiences', where they suddenly realise that they have no awareness of some preceding time period. Hitherto, there has been little research on this phenomenon and little agreement between psychologists about its nature. This paper describes some studies at the University of Nottingham, England, which attempt to explore the nature and consequences of time-gap experiences directly. It views them as a psychological phenomenon worth investigating, and as a potential predictor of accident involvement. The University's School of Psychology has given various questionnaires to its visitors, asking them to report on time-gap experiences that they have had while driving. Over 90% of respondents report that they have sometimes had such experiences while driving, but a minority of less than 10% report that they have never had them. The paper describes a diary study of 17 female and 16 male drivers, and a laboratory study of 31 female and 28 male drivers, which included line increment detection and motorway overtaking tasks. The authors consider that it is too early to draw firm conclusions about the nature of time gaps while driving, but confirm that this phenomenon is well established. Surprisingly, not all time gaps are associated with journeys on familiar routes. More studies are in progress.
Abstract