Qualitative study on decision-making process in “voluntary” withdrawal of driver's license: Transitions in self-concept, body image, and social relationships due to aging

Objectives Although previous studies have discussed the “voluntary” withdrawal of older drivers’ driving license to prevent traffic accidents, there is less evidence about the experience of giving up driving. The present study investigated the decision-making process in the “voluntary” withdrawal of the driver's license and the conceptual meaning of “voluntary” among individuals who have experienced or shortly plan the event, as well as the transitions in their social relationships, social interactions, and body image perceptions.Methods Qualitative research was undertaken to examine the explanatory research question in City A, Ibaraki prefecture, Japan. A semi-structured interview was conducted with eight male participants. They were asked related questions, for example, the meaning of driving, lifestyle changes, and so on. Data were recorded and transcribed into transcripts to be analyzed using the grounded theory approach.Results The qualitative data revealed that when participants perceived their “body” as alienated from their “self” during driving or daily living, they became confused because they needed to be conscious of the aroused existence of the “self” that operates their “body,” which was previously integrated with their “self.” This awareness led the individuals to the process of “voluntary” withdrawal from driving in coping with their reflected “self” while they gradually distrusted their “self” regarding their deteriorating “body.” Some participants lost their “self” and felt that they were forced to stop driving “voluntarily” when their “self” was determined as belonging to a risky “body,” whereas others could decide “voluntary” driving cessation and realize their “self” through social interactions when they “re-evaluated” their “self” in light of their life stories. Both types of participants had “difficulties” after driving cessation; however, the latter effectively emphasized the re-construction of the “self” and “self”-based decision-making process due to aging.Conclusion The decision-making process in the withdrawal of a driver's license due to aging resembled the process of coping with disabilities. Previous relationships between “self,” “body,” and society might be affected by age- or illness-triggered events. Encouraging the re-construction of “self” and its relationships might alleviate the psychological impact on elderly people facing “voluntary” retirement from driving.