Social and Non-social Hazard Response in Drivers with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Driving is a complex task that relies on manual, cognitive, visual and social skill. The social demands of driving may be challenging for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) due to known social impairments. This study investigated how drivers with ASD respond to social (e.g., pedestrians) and non-social (e.g., vehicles) hazards in a driving simulator compared to typically developing drivers. Overall, participants responded faster to social hazards than non-social hazards. It was also found that drivers with typical development reacted faster to social hazards, while drivers with ASD showed no difference in reaction time to social versus non-social hazards. Future work should further investigate how social impairments in ASD may affect driving safety.