# HMD-Based VR Tool for Traffic Psychological Examination: Conceptualization and Design Proposition
## 1 Introduction
### Traffic Psychological Examination of Drivers  
Driving a motor vehicle represents a complex activity which is influenced by various factors such as environmental aspects, specific social context and the mental state of the driver [6]. It means that successful driving requires several psychological preconditions which play an important role for the prevention of road accidents. It was demonstrated that 90% of all road accidents are the result of human error [7]. Regarding this, psychological assessment involving measurements of abilities and attitudes relevant for road safety provide valuable predictions about the driver's fitness to become or remain a road user, or to identify ineligible road users. Therefore, professional drivers (before starting work and in 5-year periods after reaching the age of 50) and drivers with a problematic course of driving experience (drivers who have reached at least 12 registration points and drivers with a driving ban) in the Czech Republic are subject to a legal obligation to undergo the traffic-psychological examination (TPE). Within the standard TPE, the crucial psychological measures important for adequate driving performance are tested, which are primarily represented in personal factors, as shown in the figure below (Figure 1). A specific focus is dedicated to standard mental capacities related to the driving process such as intellect, attention (concentration, distribution and capacity), sensorimotor reactivity and coordination (mainly the speed and accuracy of sensorimotor reactions to a series of visual or acoustic stimuli in a time-pressing situation), decision-making (particularly when it comes to speed and dependability in a time pressing situation), memory (mainly visual) and other mental functions [8]. An examination of personal characteristics, including mainly the examination of emotional stability, liability, impulsiveness, adaptive behavior, tendency to take risks, resistance to stress, psycho-pathological symptomatology and other personal characteristics, is also included [8]. The need for TPE can be also determined by a physician, usually for the population of seniors and people with health problems or after injuries. The TPE diagnostic methods are generally used with respect to their relative ease of use, availability and cost-effectiveness. These methods, however, possess several limitations that play a significant role when assessing the real level of the driving skill in drivers. These include dependence on subjective interpretation of behaviors, which in some cases includes non-standardized procedures and a few ecologically valid measures [9]. The validity of standard TPEs is insufficient in many aspects since these psychological methods usually measure individual performance in different than real settings which may prioritize (or on the other hand handicap) specific driver profiles [10]. Driving represents a complex sensorimotor, cognitive, behavior and socio-cultural activity [11]. The psychological measures aspire to predict driver's skills based on (cor)relations between measurements of human mental constructs and driving abilities demonstrated in a real-world diving. In standard TPE, however, the individual's mental skills are measured separately so their mutual effects are captured only in a limited way and the predicted performance in the real world may considerably lag behind, as real driving is a complex, coordinated and environment-dependent process [6; 11]. Therefore, since the 1970s, methods have been created for rides in real traffic [12], which compensate for the shortcomings of standard TPE implemented by the traditional method of administration of psychological tests in a written or computer form. In the context of Central Europe, the Wiener Fahrprobe methodology is considered the most elaborate and reliable technique for assessing driving skills [10].