Viewpoints of pedestrians with and without cognitive impairment on shared zones and zebra crossings

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 13; no. 9; p. e0203765
• Main Authors: Earl, Robyn, Falkmer, Torbjorn, Girdler, Sonya, Morris, Susan L, Falkmer, Marita
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 11.09.2018; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Accidents, Traffic - prevention & control; Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Analysis; Anxiety; Autism; Autism Spectrum Disorder - pathology; Automobile drivers; Automobile Driving - psychology; Biology and Life Sciences; Cognition; Cognitive ability; Cognitive appraisal; Communication; Ecology and Environmental Sciences; Engineering and Technology; Eye contact; Fatalities; Female; Gender; Health sciences; Humans; Information processing; Intellectual disabilities; Intellectual Disability - pathology; Male; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Medicine and Health Sciences; Middle Aged; Negotiations; Occupational therapy; Pathology; Pedestrians; Pedestrians - psychology; Perceptions; Physical Sciences; Q-Sort; Quality of life; Roads & highways; Social Sciences; Social work; Speech therapy; Traffic accidents & safety; Traffic control; Young Adult; Australia; Western Australia Australia; Sweden
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0203765

Shared zones are characterised by an absence of traditional markers that segregate the road and footpath. Negotiation of a shared zone relies on an individual's ability to perceive, assess and respond to environmental cues. This ability may be impacted by impairments in cognitive processing, which may lead to individuals experiencing increased anxiety when negotiating a shared zone. Q method was used in order to identify and explore the viewpoints of pedestrians, with and without cognitive impairments as they pertain to shared zones. Two viewpoints were revealed. Viewpoint one was defined by "confident users" while viewpoint two was defined by users who "know what [they] are doing but drivers might not". Overall, participants in the study would not avoid shared zones. Pedestrians with intellectual disability were, however, not well represented by either viewpoint, suggesting that shared zones may pose a potential barrier to participation for this group.