Driving & Video Games

 Have you ever wondered, do video games make people better drivers? Well, you wouldn't be the only person who has that thought recently. With the increasing popularity of video games, many people have begun to wonder about how driving games influence drivers. To begin this question we will look at the different types of video game driving that exist.

Here at the Palouse Regional Transporation Planning Organization we use a driving simulator that we created ourselves. The driving simulator the PRTPO has created is similar to the one pictured above. The purpose of our driving simulator is to provide young and potential drivers with a realistic view of the difficulties that come with driving. We bring this equipment with us as we visit schools & Universities around.

While this may be an education driving video game there exist several that are for pure enjoyment. Many young adults and potential drivers are more familiar with the other types of driving video games that exist. These are your stereotypical racing games that have been on the market for several decades now. These games allow players to drive upwards of 100mph with little to no consequences for their actions. A direct contrast to the simulator type of game that the PRTPO uses. These games, as pictured above, depict the driving world as flashy and full of action & adventure. A vast contrast to the mundane traffic you can find yourself in at times. With both of these types of video games, one can easily begin to question the positive effects driving video games to have. 

While it is clear that video games promote unsafe driving habits such as racing at 120mph down a freeway, many of the educational driving games are believed to be beneficial.  In 2016 at the Unisveristy of Hong Kong researchers tested the effect of video-game playing had on their driving skill. What they discovered that the type of video games that the individual played influenced their ability to drive. Comparing both gamers who played a non-action game (The Sims) vs an action game (Unreal Tournament 4), they found that "the claim that easily accessible action video games can be cost-effective training tools to help people improve their essential visuomotor-control skills used for driving,” While this makes room for the case of using driving video games as a tool for learning there is still many more questions that need answers. Perhaps the future of driving school could be all virtual.