Drink driving during the COVID-19 pandemic

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, static roadside random breath testing (RBT) was temporarily suspended between 16 March and 12 June 2020 in Queensland, Australia. In addition to restrictions on travel and social interactions, this provided a unique opportunity to examine changes in drink-driving behaviour during and after a reduction in RBT operations in the community. Three cross-sectional surveys were disseminated at different time points to examine these differences. Over three surveys, 1193 Queensland licensed drivers aged 18 years and over (M = 36.9, SD = 16.7) responded. While overall drink driving decreased over the three survey periods, there were groups where drink driving, or the intention to drink drive, increased over the same period. The overall decrease could be expected as a result of community restrictions on socialising and travel behaviours. In each of the surveys, prior engagement in drink driving was the strongest predictor of intention to increase future engagement and actual engagement. These drink drivers were more likely aged 18–24 years, male, and held restricted licensure. Notably, a small number of participants who reported drink driving, and/or intention to drink drive during the survey period, reported not having engaged in this behaviour previously. This suggested an increased likelihood of drink drivers experiencing punishment avoidance which may promote future engagement in this behaviour. Despite a decrease in social opportunities to drink, and the suspension of highly visible roadside breath testing sites, drink driving persisted. This research highlights the importance of RBTs as a general deterrent for drink driving.     

Designing road safety interventions for young drivers – The power of peer influence

Peer passengers are associated with risky driving behaviour and increased collision rate in young drivers, but the mechanism by which young drivers are influenced by their peers is not well understood. Here we report two studies that explore the effect of peer influence on young drivers. The first explored the relationship between susceptibility to peer influence and young drivers’ engagement in risky driving behaviour. 163 young drivers completed self-report measures of risky driving behaviour and susceptibility to different forms of peer influence. Results showed that young drivers who were influenced by their peers to attain social prestige and through peers intervening in their decisions committed more driving violations. The second study sought to utilise the susceptibility of young drivers to peer influence by using peers to design and deliver a safety intervention, following the ‘U in the Driver Seat’ model from the US. When compared to a traditional fear appeal and a control, the peer intervention group reported safer attitudes and intentions to drive safely at follow-up. Together these studies provide insight into how peers influence young drivers’ risky behaviour, and support the notion of using peer education tools in young driver safety interventions.     

Drinking patterns and drunk-driving behaviour in Catalonia,Spain: A comparative study

This study explores three alcohol-related databases so as to provide a comprehensive understanding of drinking patterns and the prevalence of alcohol-impaired driving in Catalonia (Spain). The rate of alcohol-impaired drivers is compared with the percentage of drinkers in this population, with a particular focus on heavy episodic drinkers. Two strategies adopted by law enforcement agents when conducting alcohol breath tests are examined: (i) non-random and (ii) random approaches to roadblock location and driver selection. We find that heavy drinker profiles (in terms of age and gender) closely match those of alcohol-impaired drivers detected at strategically located, non-random sobriety checkpoints (especially in the case of female drivers), and that they also correlate with the age-gender distribution of drivers involved in road accidents with victims. Different drink driving patterns are detected when sobriety checkpoints are located randomly and drivers are tested at random. Older drivers are identified as a risk group as they abandon the safer driving habits in relation to alcohol shown when they were middle-aged. A combination of non-random and random controls would increase driver perception of their chances of being detected when drink driving. As such, the whole population, regardless of their drinking profile, would be alerted to the serious personal, social and legal implications of alcohol-impaired driving.     

幼儿心理理论的发展与其日常同伴交往关系的研究

通过行为观察(儿童与同伴的一对一游戏)、同伴提名和教师评估,探讨心理理论发展与儿童日常同伴交往之间的关系。52名4~5岁的学前儿童参与了本实验。研究结果表明:(1)4岁以后,儿童的心理理论能力产生了实质性的变化。(2)幼儿心理理论的发展与儿童游戏情境中的同伴交往具有显著的正相关,心理理论发展水平不同的儿童在游戏中的“交往敏感”和“交往表达”两方面具有极其显著的差异。(3)儿童的心理理论水平整体上与同伴提名、教师评估相关不显著,但与儿童的亲社会行为具有紧密的关系。我们推测,儿童心理理论的发展通过影响亲社会行为间接指导儿童日常生活中的同伴交往与同伴关系。     

Modeling social rejection,physiological arousal,and peer influence on risky driving among adolescents and young adults

Peer passengers are a significant risk factor for young drivers to experience adverse driving outcomes. However, few studies have manipulated social evaluation contexts and individual susceptibilities to peer influence, such as physiological arousal, to measure effects on driving. The current study explored whether social evaluation affects driving outcomes and if the type of evaluation affects perception of peer norms. Young drivers (N = 75) were randomized to control, social acceptance, or social rejection conditions and observed risky or risk-averse driving norms. Results indicated that peer passengers and peer driving norms, regardless of the social-evaluative context, affected variability in driving outcomes, particularly in intersections. Physiological arousal and perceptions of social acceptance also predicted more variability in driving outcomes. These findings suggest that passengers increase irregular driving patterns, perhaps due to passengers distracting young drivers from road conditions. Further, social acceptance increases the strength of the relationship between the presence of peer passengers and inconsistent driving patterns, indicating that social rewards may precede risky behavior more often than social threats do.     

Can friendship serve as an impetus for safe driving among young drivers?

Reckless driving is a key factor in injury and death among young people, especially men, throughout the world. At this developmental stage (ages 17–24), the youngster’s behavior, including driving habits, is strongly influenced by the social discourse. Whereas previous studies have investigated the impact of concepts such as peer pressure and the number of passengers in the car, they have dealt little with the overall social relations that characterize young people, particularly, the nature of their friendships and their reflection in safe versus risky driving.Using qualitative phenomenological methodology, the present study relies on 32 semi-structured in-depth interviews to explore the elements of the relationships among young drivers in the context of driving behavior. Aristotle’s conceptualization of three types of friendship was employed as the interpretative framework. The findings reveal that a young driver’s behavior when driving with friends is associated with the different perceptions of friendship, and is gender and age sensitive. The elements of a friendship of utility (reciprocal interests, practical and beneficial interactions) were connected with safety at all ages and in both genders, and those of a friendship of virtue (responsibility, equality, concern for others) were associated with safe driving among females of all ages and among some of the older male drivers (21–24 years). In contrast, the components of a friendship of pleasure (spending leisure time together, sharing mutual interests) were related to risky and distracted driving, especially among the younger male drivers (17–19 years). It is suggested that interventions might promote safe driving among young people by fostering the positive aspects of their peer relationships.     

“I would have lost the respect of my friends and family if they knew I had bent the road rules”: Parents,peers, and the perilous behaviour of young drivers

Young novice drivers are at considerable risk of injury on the road. Their behaviour appears vulnerable to the social influence of their parents and friends. The nature and mechanisms of parent and peer influence on young novice driver (16–25 years) behaviour was explored via small group interviews (n = 21) and two surveys (n1 = 1170, n2 = 390) to inform more effective young driver countermeasures. Parental and peer influence occurred in pre-Licence, Learner, and Provisional (intermediate) periods. Pre-Licence and unsupervised Learner drivers reported their parents were less likely to punish risky driving (e.g., speeding). These drivers were more likely to imitate their parents and reported their parents were also risky drivers. Young novice drivers who experienced or expected social punishments from peers, including ‘being told off’ for risky driving, reported less riskiness. Conversely drivers who experienced or expected social rewards such as being ‘cheered on’ by friends – who were also more risky drivers – reported more risky driving including crashes and offences. Interventions enhancing positive influence and curtailing negative influence may improve road safety outcomes not only for young novice drivers, but for all persons who share the road with them. Parent-specific interventions warrant further development and evaluation including: modelling safe driving behaviour by parents; active monitoring of driving during novice licensure; and sharing the family vehicle during the intermediate phase. Peer-targeted interventions including modelling of safe driving behaviour and attitudes; minimisation of social reinforcement and promotion of social sanctions for risky driving also need further development and evaluation.     

An Examination of the Actor-Observer Effect in Young Drivers' Attributions for Their Own and Their Friends' Risky Driving

The attributions of 70 young drivers for their own and their friends' risky driving were examined using open-ended questions to determine if there were self-other differences consistent with the actor-observer effect. Six response categories were created, 4 of which were rated as more dispositional than situational by a subsample of the participants and 2 of which were rated as more situational than dispositional. While the largely dispositional category "Showing off, acting cool" was used significantly more for friends than for self, and the largely situational "In a hurry, late" was used significantly more for self than for friends, there was only limited support for the actor-observer effect overall. The participants also rated their friends as taking more risks than themselves. The actor-observer differences are suggested to be influenced primarily by motivational factors and the context in which young people observe their friends' driving. New approaches to traffic safety interventions are suggested.     

Alcohol Use in Adolescent Twins and Affiliation with Substance Using Peers

Affiliation with substance using peers is one of the strongest predictors of adolescent alcohol use. This association is typically interpreted causally: peers who drink incite their friends to drink. This association may be complicated by uncontrolled genetic and environmental confounds because teens with familial predispositions for adolescent substance use may be more likely to select into social networks where drinking is common. We test this alternative hypothesis using a sample of 1,820 twin and sibling pairs, and their same-sex best friends, from three waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Across all three waves, peer report of substance use did not influence adolescent alcohol use when genetic and shared environmental predispositions for drinking were considered. The association between alcohol use and peer behavior may be a spurious association attributable to a shared genetic liability to drink alcohol and associate with peers who drink alcohol.     

Peer pressure and risk taking in young drivers’ speeding behavior

Although many countermeasures have been implemented in Europe, young drivers continue to have a high rate of involvement in car crashes. Their crash rate is higher in presence of peer passengers than when driving alone. Peer presence could contribute toward explaining this involvement, especially regarding speeding. Peers are known to often influence young drivers’ risky behaviors through proximal (direct and indirect active pressures) and distal (passive pressure) forms of intervention (Allen & Brown, 2008). This present study examined the effect of peer pressure and peer risk taking on the estimated speeding behavior of a scenario driver (ESBSD) as well as on the estimated speeding intention of a scenario driver (ESISD). The scenario driver was the main character in an online-scenario based questionnaire regarding speeding. The main character is a fictional young male depicted driving with his best friends in all the experimental scenarios in which the variables type of pressure and peer risk taking were manipulated. One hundred and eighty young French drivers (18–25 years, 50% men) took part in the study. The key findings were that (1) only direct and indirect active pressure, but not passive pressure, increased the ESBSD and that (2) high (vs. low) peer risk taking lead to a higher ESISD. However, no interaction between the pressure type and peer risk taking on ESBSD and ESISD was found. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

Peer ratings of males and females possessing different sex-role identities

Two investigations were conducted to explore peer ratings of males and females exhibiting different sex roles. In the first study, 160 males and females representing four sex-role groups were rated by close, same sex friends on Gough's Adjective Check List. The results indicated that for both males and females, the four sex-role groups were perceived differently by their friends. I n the second investigation, peer rated adjectives which differentiated between the sex-role groups in Study I were evaluated on a positive/negative dimension; self-rated adjectives differentiating between the four sex-role groups in an earlier study (Baucom, 1980) were evaluated similarly. The findings showed that the peer-rated and self-rated adjectives which differentiated androgynous males and females from the other sex-role groups were viewed more positively than adjectives describing any other group: peer-rated and self-rated adjectives describing undifferentiated persons were consistently viewed negatively. Significant differences between the evaluations of the peer-rated and self-rated adjectives suggest that conclusions about the effects of sex roles are likely to vary, depending upon whether self-report inventories or peer ratings are investigated. Cautions are presented regarding generalizations from only one method of measurement.     

Driving impairs talking

It is well known that conversation (e.g, on a cell phone) impairs driving. We demonstrate that the reverse is also true: Language production and comprehension, and the encoding of the products of comprehension into memory, are less accurate when one is driving. Ninety-six pairs of drivers and conversation partners engaged in a story-retelling task in a driving simulator. Half of the pairs were older adults. Each pair completed one dual-task block (driving during the retelling task) and two single-task control blocks. The results showed a decline in the accuracy of the drivers’ storytelling and of their memory for stories that were told to them by their nondriving partners. Speech production suffered an additional cost when the difficulty of driving increased. Measures of driving performance suggested that the drivers gave priority to the driving task when they were conversing. As a result, their linguistic performance suffered.     

Profile of urban vs rural drivers detected drink driving via Roadside Breath Testing (RBT) in Queensland,Australia, between 2000 and 2011

ProblemIn Australia, as in many other countries, a disproportionate number of drink driving crashes occur on rural roads.Aims and methodThe study used Queensland Police Random Breath Testing (RBT) data from 2000–2011 to (a) comparing drink driving rates and RBT efficacy in areas of increasing remoteness (b) compare drink driver factors and the circumstances of apprehensions in rural and urban areas.ResultsGenerally, rural areas had a higher detection rate per RBT intercepts and a greater number of apprehensions per licensed drivers than the state average. Main effects showed that rural drivers were more likely to be male and to be a reoffender but less likely to be apprehended between midnight and 5.59 am and after visiting a licensed venue. Urban drivers were more likely to be aged 17–49 years and to be apprehended with a BAC < 0.15%.ConclusionDifferences in RBT effectiveness and drink driving factors and circumstances exist between rural and urban areas.Practical applicationThe greater number of drink drivers in rural areas signal a need for targeted interventions in these areas. To increase the effectiveness of such interventions, further research should examine the mechanisms responsible for these observed differences between rural and urban drink driver.     

Driving Vengeance and Willful Violations: Clustering of Problem Driving Attitudes

A total of 93 drivers (46 female, 47 male) from Toronto, Canada, with at least 5 years' driving experience, completed a battery of self-report questionnaires assessing the likelihood of engaging in mild driver aggression, frequency of past driver violence, driving vengeance, and willful violations. All were recruited as voluntary participants through posted signs, personal contact, and referrals. Mild driver aggression increased independently with elevated vengeance and elevated violations. Driver violence was predicted by the three-way interaction of Vengeance × Violations × Gender such that violence increased in male drivers with a vengeful attitude, especially in combination with higher levels of violations. The data indicated that driver aggression and violence were more prevalent among drivers who held clusters of other dangerous driving attitudes and behaviors as part of their typical behavior routine.     

A Survey on Driving in Clients With Mental Health Disorders

Few studies have explored driving issues in adult mental health. In this pilot study, 48 drivers were compared to 24 participants who had ceased driving, on their clinical and driving characteristics. Driving-related services offered to them were also documented. Participants who had stopped driving were more likely to be in-patients on antipsychotic or several medications. A third of the participants reported negative effects of their illness and/or medications on driving. Psychiatrists and occupational therapists offered assessments and recommendations related to fitness to drive to 30% of their clients using complementary approaches. This survey indicates that few drivers with mental health disorders receive driving-related services. More evidence-based practice guidelines are needed.     

童年中期同伴关系、同伴关系知觉与心理行为适应的关系

本研究以422名小学二、三、四年级的儿童进行为期3年的纵向研究,考察了时间2的同伴关系知觉在时间1的同伴关系和时间3的心理行为适应之间的中介效应。结果表明,自我知觉的社会能力在同伴接纳与社交/领导行为和孤独感之间的中介作用显著,自我知觉的友谊质量在双向互选朋友与社交/领导行为和孤独感之间的中介作用显著。     

Peer interactions of conduct-disordered,anxious-withdrawn,and well-adjusted black adolescents

The relationship between behavior problems and adolescent peer relations was examined in 30 black male adolescents divided into three equal-sized groups on the basis of individual psychosocial functioning (conduct-disordered, anxious-withdrawn, well-adjusted). Groups were matched on age, IQ, and father absence. An observational method was used to evaluate dominance, conflict, affect, and social competence manifested with a friend and with a well-adjusted stranger. Conduct-disordered and anxious-withdrawn adolescents displayed less social competence and less positive affect than well-adjusted adolescents when interacting with both friends and strangers. Anxious-withdrawn adolescents evidenced more personal apprehension than their well-adjusted counterparts. All groups showed greater leadership ability, talked more, and showed less personal apprehension with friends than with strangers. The findings support the role of peer relations in the maintenance and exacerbation of adolescent psychosocial difficulties.This research was supported by funding to the Department of Psychology at Memphis State University granted through the Centers of Excellence Program of the State of Tennessee. This article is based on a master's thesis submitted by the first author to the Department of Psychology at Memphis State University.     

Driving violations,aggression and perceived consensus

A questionnaire survey of 171 English drivers investigated the relationships between trait aggressiveness, self-reported driving violations, and perceptions of the commission of driving violations by others, using the extended violation scale of the Manchester Driver behaviour Questionnaire (DBQ). Drivers who were relatively high on trait aggressiveness reported committing more traffic violations than those who had lower scores. Both aggressive and non aggressive drivers believed that others committed the driving offences more often than they did themselves, although those with a higher score for trait aggressiveness had a greater tendency to do so. The commission of both aggressive and Highway Code violations was predicted by trait anger. Those high on anger and hostility were also more likely to have been involved in a road traffic accident. The implications for road safety interventions are discussed.     

Peer and school problems in the lives of urban adolescents: Frequency, difficulty, and relation to adjustment

This study examined the occurrence of problem situations in the peer and school domains and their relation to adjustment among urban adolescents. Students from three urban middle schools (N = 176) serving a predominantly African American population rated 61 problem situations identified in a previous qualitative study and completed measures of adjustment. Ratings of frequency and difficulty confirmed the relevance of these situations for this population. Confirmatory factor analyses suggested that covariation in the frequency and difficulty of problem situations could be represented by separate factors representing peer situations involving friends, other peer situations, and school situations. The number of different problem situations experienced was significantly correlated with physical and relational aggression, delinquency, depression, anxiety, and self-worth. Several of these relations were strongest for peer situations that did not involve friends. There were few gender differences in the strength of these relations.     

Peer Influence: Mechanisms and Motivations

This research addresses a question that has not been previously – why do youths try to influence their friends’ behavior? Analysis of written accounts of peer influence toward both deviance and conformity reveals clear differences in motives for peer influence toward prosocial and deviant behavior. Influence toward deviant behavior is much more likely to be motivated by selfish concerns, and influence toward prosocial behavior is more likely to be motivated by altruistic concerns. These findings are consistent with the control theory view that crime and deviance is asocial behavior, and not the result of strong social ties to others.