One evening, I started musing about the meaning of the word driver, which enjoys enormous popularity nowadays, far beyond the realm of vehicles. One example is climate change, or other evolving natural phenomena. I have a suspicion that the term is often used when the writer is not sure enough to call something a cause of the observed effect. But what's the point, then?
The word is also popular in economics, where causality is notoriously difficult to assign. The direction of the drive is often not specified, as long as it is understood to be forward, or in a positive sense. Here too, the vagueness seems to be the term's main asset. In a car, at least, the driver is also responsible for steering .