The influence of music genres on the driving behaviour of young drivers and their visual scanning of the environment

Recently, distractions have been recognized as a significant risk factor in road traffic. This simulator study aims to investigate how different music genres affect the driving behaviour of young drivers and their visual scanning of the environment in urban settings. The genres considered were Croatian pop, foreign pop, classical music, metal, and Balkan folk music, while on one road section there was no music. The research sample consisted of 61 participants (44 males and 17 females) with a mean age of 24.58 years and a mean driving experience of 5.25 years. The influence of music on the drivers' behaviour was analysed on the basis of the data collected from the driving simulator, eye tracking glasses, and structured observation during driving sessions. It was found that the highest average speed (around 60 km/h) was recorded while the participants were listening to Balkan folk and metal music, while other music genres, as well as the "no music" condition, influenced driving speed in a similar way to one another and the participants drove at 50 km/h on average. Furthermore, the results suggest that the music genre also affects how drivers visually scan the environment (the number of gazes classified as fixations and number of road signs looked at). The findings obtained may be used in road safety work and practical recommendations and further research are discussed.