Evaluating the effectiveness of a young driver-education intervention: Learn2Live

Road traffic collisions are the leading cause of death among young adults, and behaviour change interventions play a key role in battling this public health concern. Road safety interventions are often educational and have traditionally relied on fear appeals to alter risky driving behaviour - yet there is a paucity of data regarding their effectiveness. Peer-education has been championed as an additional route to promoting safe driving behaviour. To examine these issues, this study evaluated the effectiveness of a fear appeal intervention in improving young drivers’ attitudes towards risky driving behaviour. A total sample of 800 high school and college students (16–20 years old) completed a similar set of questionnaires pre- and post-intervention and at a 3-month follow-up. Two different types of follow-up interventions were also compared: a peer-led and an expert-led road safety educational event. Measures evaluating attitudes towards risky driving behaviour were completed at all 3 time frames, and questions regarding the participants' perception of the follow-up event were asked. Overall, our data showed an improvement in attitudes towards risky driving behaviours both immediately after the intervention and three months later. These changes were especially evident among females. With regard to the follow-ups, both were effective in improving the attitudes towards risky driving. However, the peer-led event was preferred by the participants compared to the expert-led follow-up.     

Safe on the road – Does Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems Use affect Road Risk Perception?

A major goal of advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) deployment is higher road safety. However, these systems are only as safe as users handle them. This article presents a study evaluating the links between the use of ADAS and road risk perception. 101 drivers were invited to evaluate accident probability and risk controllability and to indicate whether they were using ADAS or not. Results show that the use of ADAS decreases perceived accident probability and increases perceived controllability for risky driving situations. Since the degree of automation in ADAS is still low nowadays, it is important to discuss the importance of human factors for the purpose of a safer implementation.     

Contribution of cognitive factors to the prediction of post-traumatic stress disorder, phobia and depression after motor vehicle accidents

Past research into the psychological consequences of traumatic events has largely focused on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), although other anxiety disorders and depression are also common in the aftermath of trauma. Little is known about differential predictors of these conditions. The present study investigated the extent to which theoretically derived cognitive variables predict PTSD, phobias and depression after motor vehicle accidents. The cognitive predictors were compared to a set of established, mainly non-cognitive predictors. In addition, we tested how disorder-specific the cognitive predictors are. Participants (n=101) were interviewed within a year after having been injured in a motor vehicle accident. Diagnoses of PTSD, travel phobias and depression, symptom severities and predictor variables were assessed with self-report questionnaires and structured interviews. In multiple regression analyses, the sets of cognitive variables derived from disorder-specific models explained significantly greater proportions of the variance of the symptom severities than the established predictors (PTSD 76% vs. 45%, depression 72% vs. 46% and phobia 66% vs. 40%), and than cognitive variables derived from the models of the other disorders. In addition, the majority of individual cognitive variables showed the expected pattern of differences between diagnostic groups. The results support the hypothesis that disorder-specific sets of cognitive factors contribute to the development and maintenance of PTSD, phobias and depression following traumatic events.     

Prevalence of poor psychological morbidity following a minor road traffic accident (RTA): The clinical implications of a prospective longitudinal study

Few Road Traffic Accident (RTA) victims have their psychological needs attended to in hospital or afterwards. We conducted a small-scale preliminary investigation exclusively focussing on the prevalence of poor psychological morbidity following minor road traffic accidents (RTAs). Participants (N?=?50) completed assessments one-month after their minor RTA and (N?=?39) at 4-months follow-up. The identification of clinically significant anxiety, depression and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in this minor RTA sample supports both evidence reported elsewhere and our specific predictions. Seven (14%) participants at baseline and five (12.8%) at follow-up met diagnostic criteria for PTSD. The clinical implications for identifying and meeting the psychological needs of minor RTA victims are discussed in the context of cognitive behavioural conceptualizations of mental disorder.     

Investigating the individual and organisational predictors of work-related driving crash involvement in Ethiopia

The rate of road traffic injury and death in Ethiopia is at a critical level when compared to rates in high-income countries. Considering the enormity of this issue, research is to identify groups of high-risk road users and the factors contributing to their crash involvement. This study focuses on work-related drivers. This study explores driving behaviour as a mediator of the relationship between organisational and individual attribute factors and self-reported crashes in a sample of 213 work-related drivers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The hypothesised framework identifies driving behaviour as the most proximal determinant of self-reported crashes, and safety values, role overload and self-efficacy as antecedents of driving behaviour. With the exception of the relationship between self-efficacy and driving behaviour, all the hypothesised relationships were supported. We make recommendations for intervention approaches that are theoretically focused and sensitive to the cultural context.     

Similarities between self-reported road safety behavior of teenage drivers and their perceptions concerning road safety behavior of their parents

The study investigated 401 19-year-olds, who were licensed car drivers in Lithuania. The focus of the survey was on the self-reported road safety behaviors of teenage drivers and their perceptions of their parents’ road safety behaviors, in order to assess behavioral similarities between teenagers and their parents. The survey also investigated whether parents and teenagers discuss issues of driving safely, and whether there is an association between these conversations and driving restrictions.According to teenagers’ reporting, road safety behavior of teenage drivers and their parents often is similar: most of them break the speed limit, drive when feeling fatigued, use a cell phone when driving, and do not fasten the seat belt as a passenger in the back seat. The study indicated that there is a positive moderate correlation between road safety behaviors of teenagers and their parents, as reported by the teenagers. A majority of teenagers report that they discuss road safety factors, driving safely and driving behavior with their parents. Based on teenager reports, the parents, who discuss road safety issues with their children, are more likely to apply restrictions on teenagers’ driving.     

Anger,aggression and road rage behaviour in Malaysian drivers

This study tested the four factor structure of the Driving Anger Expression Inventory (DAX) in a sample of young Malaysian drivers and the relationship these factors had with several other variables. Confirmatory Factor Analysis broadly supported the four factor solution of the DAX, being: Personal Physical Aggressive Expression, Use of a Vehicle to Express Anger, Verbal Aggressive Expression and Adaptive/Constructive expression. The short version of the Driving Anger Scale was positively correlated with the three types of aggressive responses and not surprisingly with a variable comprised of all three types of aggressive responses (Total Aggressive Expression). Total Aggressive Expression was higher for males and negatively related to age, years licensed and slower preferred driving speed. All three of the aggressive forms of expression had significant relationships with crash-related conditions, such as: loss of concentration, losing control of their vehicle, having received a ticket and involvement in near-misses. In particular, all three of the aggressive forms of expression had significant relationships with losing control of the vehicle and Total Aggressive Expression was correlated with all crash-related conditions. In addition, Personal Physical Aggressive Expression and Total Aggressive Expression were both significantly related to crash involvement.     

Shared road is double happiness: Evaluation of a “Share the road” sign

A road sign with the text «Share the road» and a picture of a smiling cyclist and a passing car was evaluated in a before–after study with surveys among cyclists and car drivers. The sign was set up at two sites on a test road near Oslo in summer 2014. A similar road was used as a comparison. About two thirds of the participants on the test road had noticed the sign. The majority liked it and agreed with its message. Cyclists have more often noticed the sign than car drivers have and they were somewhat more positive towards the sign. Effects on self-reported behavior and the perceived behavior of others were evaluated by comparing changes from the before- to the after-period between test and comparison road. Self-reported behavior of both cyclists and car drivers has improved on the test road after the sign was set up, especially in overtaking situations, and these results are in accordance with how cyclists and car drivers perceived each other’s behavior. The general perception of other road users has improved as well. The results are most likely representative of similar roads with a large proportion of car traffic that is related to recreation and a relatively low level of conflict.     

Drunk driving offenders’ knowledge and behaviour in relation to alcohol-involved driving in Yinchuan and a comparison with Guangzhou,China

ObjectiveThis study was conducted after a legislative amendment criminalising drunk driving (BAC > 80 mg/100 ml) had been in force for a year and investigated whether drunk driving offenders in Yinchuan, China were aware of the law, and whether their knowledge of and exposure to enforcement and the existence of alcohol use disorders were related to their alcohol-involved driving behaviour. The results were compared with results from an earlier study in Guangzhou, China.MethodA survey was conducted from July to October 2012 in Yinchuan to collect information on drunk driving offenders’ knowledge and practice in relation to alcohol-involved driving. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) was used to assess hazardous drinking levels. In total, 106 drunk driving offenders were recruited while in detention. The findings were compared with those of the Guangzhou study, where the same procedure was used to recruit 101 drunk driving offenders.ResultsThe mean age of the sample was 31.7 years (SD = 8.1; range 17–59 years). Males constituted 96% of the sample. The mean age at which offenders reported starting to drink alcohol was 18.7 years (SD = 3.2; range 10–26 years). Driver’s licenses had been held for an average of 8.5 years. The status of knowledge in relation to alcohol-involved driving in Yinchuan was slightly lower in proportion than in Guangzhou. The rate of alcohol-involved driving reported in the previous 12 months in Yinchuan (43%) was slightly higher than in Guangzhou (39%). The proportion of recidivists in Guangzhou (21.8%) was higher than Yinchuan’s (10.4%). On average, offenders had experienced 1.6 police alcohol breath tests in the previous year (SD = 1.3; range 1–10). AUDIT scores indicated that a substantial proportion of the offenders had high levels of alcohol use disorders.DiscussionLimited awareness of legal alcohol limits might contribute to drunk driving offences. The high level of alcohol consumption by many offenders suggests that hazardous drinking levels may be a contributor. Recidivist drivers also had higher AUDIT scores, which suggest there may be benefit in using the AUDIT to identify potential drink drivers and recidivists, subject to further research.