The Effects of Acoustic Turn-by-turn Navigation on Wayfinding

This study examined the impact of using an acoustic turn-by-turn navigation device on wayfinding. Participants used a driving simulator to traverse the same route twice. They either traveled both times without the guidance or used a turn-by-turn navigation on the first drive and then replicating the route from memory on the second drive. Wayfinding performance was assessed by using route travel time and an assessment of scene recognition. Results show that using a turn-by-turn navigation system negates route learning and impairs scene recognition. These findings suggest that using a navigation system while driving creates inattention blindness, a failure to “see” elements in the environment.