Crazy Driving Experiment of the 1960s: Studying the "Attentional Demand" of Driving

In the mid 1960s, Prof John W. Senders (that's him under the helmet) and a team of psychologists wanted to study the "attentional demand" of automobile driving.

So, they devised a special helmet with a movable visor that obstructed the driver's vision - in essence making him drive blindfolded and .... then send him down Route 128 outside of Boston!

Check out the crazy video: Link [embedded YouTube] - Thanks Andrew Wirtanen!

Newest 2

Newest 2 Comments

It was not so crazy as you might think. The method is now a standard way of assessing the distracting effects of devices used or installed in cars. As one of the YouTube commenters correctly put it: I was measuring the effect of cell phone usage before they were invented. If you would like a PDF of the report ask for it.

J.W. Senders

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

He's still looking for volonteers to test the Mount Washington mountain road ;)

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

Login to comment.

Click here to view up to the first 100 of this post's 2 comments