The influence of driver distraction on driving performance is not yet well understood, but it can have detrimental effects on road safety. In this study, we examined the effects of visual and non-visual distractions during driving, using a high-fidelity driving simulator. The visual task was presented either at an offset angle on an in-vehicle screen, or on the back of a moving lead vehicle. Similar to results from previous studies in this area, non-visual (cognitive) distraction resulted in improved lane keeping performance and increased gaze concentration towards the centre of the road, compared to baseline driving, and further examination of the steering control metrics indicated an increase in steering wheel reversal rates, steering wheel acceleration, and steering entropy. We show, for the first time, that when the visual task is presented centrally, drivers' lane deviation reduces (similar to non-visual distraction), whilst measures of steering control, overall, indicated more steering activity, compared to baseline. When using a visual task that required the diversion of gaze to an in-vehicle display, but without a manual element, lane keeping performance was similar to baseline driving. Steering wheel reversal rates were found to adequately tease apart the effects of non-visual distraction (increase of 0.5° reversals) and visual distraction with offset gaze direction (increase of 2.5° reversals). These findings are discussed in terms of steering control during different types of in-vehicle distraction, and the possible role of manual interference by distracting secondary tasks.

Driver distraction is strongly associated with crashes and near-misses, and despite the attention this topic has received in recent years, the effect of different types of distracting task on driving performance remains unclear. In the case of non-visual distractions, such as talking on the phone or other engaging verbal tasks that do not require a visual input, a common finding is reduced lateral variability in steering and gaze patterns where participants concentrate their gaze towards the centre of the road and their steering control is less variable. In the experiments presented here, we examined whether this finding is more pronounced in the presence of a lead car (which may provide a focus point for gaze) and whether the behaviour of the lead car has any influence on the driver's steering control. In addition, both visual and non-visual distraction tasks were used, and their effect on different road environments (straight and curved roadways) was assessed. Visual distraction was found to increase variability in both gaze patterns and steering control, non-visual distraction reduced gaze and steering variability in conditions without a lead car; in the conditions where a lead car was present there was no significant difference from baseline. The lateral behaviour of the lead car did not have an effect on steering performance, a finding which indicates that a lead car may not necessarily be used as an information point. Finally, the effects of driver distraction were different for straight and curved roadways, indicating a stronger influence of the road environment in steering than previously thought.

Biases in favor of culturally prevalent social ingroups are ubiquitous, but random assignment to arbitrary experimentally created social groups is also sufficient to create ingroup biases (i.e., the minimal group effect; MGE). The extent to which ingroup bias arises from specific social contexts versus more general psychological tendencies remains unclear. This registered report focuses on three questions. First, how culturally prevalent is the MGE? Second, how do critical cultural and individual factors moderate its strength? Third, does the MGE meaningfully relate to culturally salient real-world ingroup biases? We compare the MGE to bias in favor of a family member (first cousin) and a national ingroup member. We propose to recruit a sample of > 200 participants in each of > 50 nations to examine these questions and advance our understanding of the psychological foundations and cultural prevalence of ingroup bias.

Numbers-skills are affected in as many as 65% of cases following a stroke or a brain-injury, a condition termed ‘acalculia’. Post-stroke numerical skills interventions have to-date focused on using intense repetitions (‘drill’), in one-to-one settings. However, while ‘drill’ is needed, there is increasing evidence that learning (and re-learning) of numerical skills may be enhanced by additional techniques, informed by current educational and cognitive neuro-science theories. We report on a mixed-methods feasibility-study examining the acceptability and impact of the first reported group intervention for acalculia, that is based on the principles of embodied learning, playfulness, and en-riched social environment. Four brain-injury survivors took part in six-weekly 45-minute group sessions involving games with numbers, accompanied with congruent movements. Following a 4-week break, N=3 took part in additional three sessions. Performance on number skills (theoretical and functional) was collected before the intervention (T0), after six weeks (T1) and after further three weeks (T2) using validated batteries. Qualitative data were collected 3-months post intervention using semi-structured interviews with two patients. Results show improvements on all measures at both T1 and T2, including far-transfer to untrained problems. Qualitative findings emphasised the importance of group-settings, and the impact of playful learning on cognition, engagement, learning, confidence and wellbeing. We conclude that playful group therapy integrating modern educational theories is feasible and can be effective for im-proving numerical skills and speculate on the possible neural mechanisms that may facilitate these findings. Future work should evaluate the impact of combining multi-sensory, movement and cognitive rehabilitation in improving patients’ linguistic, physiological, and wellbeing outcomes.

Numbers-skills are affected in as many as 65% of cases following a stroke or a brain-injury, a condition termed ‘acalculia’. Post-stroke numerical skills interventions have to-date focused on using intense repetitions (‘drill’), in one-to-one settings. However, while ‘drill’ is needed, there is increasing evidence that learning (and re-learning) of numerical skills may be enhanced by additional techniques, informed by current educational and cognitive neuroscience theories. We report on a mixed-methods feasibility study examining the acceptability and impact of the first reported group intervention for acalculia, that is based on the principles of embodied learning, playfulness, and enriched social environment. Four brain-injury survivors took part in six-weekly 45-min group sessions involving games with numbers, accompanied with congruent movements. Following a 4-week break, n = 3 took part in additional three sessions. Performance on number skills (theoretical and functional) was collected before the intervention (T0), after six weeks (T1) and after further three weeks (T2) using validated batteries. Qualitative data were collected 3-months post intervention using semi-structured interviews with two patients. Results show improvements on all measures at both T1 and T2, including far-transfer to untrained problems. Qualitative findings emphasised the importance of group-settings, and the impact of playful learning on cognition, engagement, learning, confidence and wellbeing. We conclude that playful group therapy integrating modern educational theories is feasible and can be effective for improving numerical skills and speculate on the possible neural mechanisms that may facilitate these findings. Future work should evaluate the impact of combining multi-sensory, movement and cognitive rehabilitation in improving patients’ linguistic, physiological, and wellbeing outcomes.