Is music a mediator impacting car following when driver's personalities are considered

Abstract

Music can influence car following performance. However, it is not well resolved about its mediation effect on car following when the drivers' personalities are considered. We investigated how music style and tempo influence car following with different personalities. Twelve tracks were used in this study, four for each music tempo range, i.e., slow, medium, and fast tempo, and six for each music style, i.e., classical and pop one. The results showed introverts were more susceptible to music, and tend to listen to slow tempo music and classical one. In addition, pop music aroused the drivers more than classical and may induce closer headway distance. Furthermore, with the tempo speeding up, the drivers were more excited, less concentrated and performed less stablely. The medium music tempo was the most appropriate choice for keeping stable headway distance and taking actions to the changes of the leading vehicle. The present study shows personality can mediate the influence of music listening while driving, and music style and tempo can impact the mediation in a specific way. The study provides a guide on the music choice during driving and may bring benefits to the configuration of the music radio program and car music player.

Keywords: Car following; Extroverts; Introverts; Music style; Music tempo; Personality.