Differential moderating effect of locus of control on effect of driving experience in young male and female drivers

Road safety attitude and behaviour among motorcycle riders in Ghana: A focus on traffic locus of control and health belief

Road traffic accident is a leading cause of death and various life deformities worldwide. This burden is even higher among motorcycle riders in lower-to-middle-income countries. Despite the various interventions made to address the menace, the fatalities continue to be on the ascendency. One major area that has received little attention is the attitude and behaviour of motorcycle riders. The present study aimed to examine the contribution of traffic Locus of Control (LoC) and health belief on road safety attitude and behaviour. 317 motorcycle riders participated in the study. The participants completed a questionnaire comprising various sections such as motorcycle riding behaviour, road safety attitude, risk perception, the intention to use helmets, and traffic LoC. The results showed a significant positive correlation between road safety attitude and behaviour (r (295) = .33, p < .001). Drifting towards internal LoC was associated with more positive behaviour on the roads (r (295) = -.23, p < .001). Intention to use helmet, health motivation, perceived susceptibility, perceived benefits, and perceived barriers were the factors in the health belief model that were associated with road safety attitude (r (295) = .404, p < .001). Finally, the multiple linear regression model showed that road safety attitude and traffic LoC made significant contributions to road user behaviour [F(3, 293) = 13.73, p < .001]. These findings have important implications towards shaping responsible behaviour among motorcycle riders.

An empirical study on new-energy vehicle users' preferences of in-vehicle interaction input methods

New energy sources are transforming the automotive market. This shift has also expanded the possibilities for in-vehicle interaction. Through a literature review, this study categorizes the in-vehicle interaction activities into three types: driving tasks, comfort tasks, and entertainment tasks. This study conducted empirical survey of 377 users to understand their preferences of in-vehicle interaction input methods inside new energy vehicles. The results show that gender, educational level, income, driver's license type and driving experience have significant influence on the perception and preference of the in-vehicle interaction input methods. However, age and experience with new energy vehicle didn't show significant results. The findings of this study can assist manufacturers in developing targeted solutions and meeting the personalized needs of users in future vehicle market segments.

Exploring the association between the Arabic version of the Traffic Locus of Control, driving behavior, and road traffic crashes: A multidimensional approach

The Traffic Locus of Control scale (T-LOC) serves as a measure of drivers' personality attributes, providing insights into their perceptions of potential causes of road traffic crashes (RTCs). This study meticulously evaluated the psychometric properties of the Arabic version of T-LOC (T-LOC-A) among Lebanese drivers. Additionally, the study aimed to explore associations between the T-LOC scale and various driving variables, including driver behavior, accident involvement, and traffic offenses. A cross-sectional study was conducted among Lebanese drivers using a face-to-face approach. The validation of the Arabic version of T-LOC (T-LOC-A) occurred through a two-stage process: translating and culturally adapting T-LOC in the first stage, and testing its psychometric properties in the second stage. Data were collected using a comprehensive self-reported questionnaire in Arabic, covering demographic and travel-related variables, risk involvement, and measures such as the Driver Behavior Questionnaire (DBQ) and T-LOC. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were performed to scrutinize the factorial structure of T-LOC. Pearson correlation and chi-square tests were used for continuous and categorical variables, respectively. Two logistic regression analyses were executed to probe associations between T-LOC and involvement in road traffic crashes (RTCs) and T-LOC subscales with the occurrence of traffic offenses. The study included 568 drivers, predominantly male (69%) and aged between 30 and 49 years (42.1%). The findings revealed that T-LOC-A exhibited robust psychometric properties, with excellent reliabilities (α = 0.85) and adherence to the original four-factor structure, encompassing self (α = 0.88), other drivers (α = 0.91), vehicle/environment (α = 0.86), and fate (α = 0.66). The multidimensional structure was statistically supported by favorable fit indices. Gender differences revealed men attributing responsibility to other drivers, while women leaned towards fate and luck beliefs. Regarding driver behavior, the "other drivers" and self-dimensions of T-LOC-A correlated positively with aggressive violations. The fate dimension showed positive associations with aggressive violations and lapses. The "other drivers" subscale correlated positively with errors, and the vehicle/environment subscale with lapses. External T-LOC factors were positively associated with accident involvement, while the "LOC self" factor emerged as a protective element. In terms of traffic offenses, "LOC fate" displayed a positive association, while the "LOC self" factor showed a protective effect. In conclusion, the Arabic T-LOC is a reliable and valuable instrument, suggesting potential improvements in driving safety by addressing drivers' locus of control perceptions.

Effects of road width, radii and speeds on collisions at three-arm priority intersections

Simulation and observational studies have identified the importance of intersection geometries and vehicle speeds in collisions. However, the causal mechanisms of such collisions in low-speed areas and for different collision types remain unclear. This observational study investigates the complex relationships between geometries, speeds, visibilities, and road traffic collisions in the context of low-speed urban areas.Data were collected from 120 three-arm priority intersections in Portsmouth, UK. In 2007, Portsmouth became the first city in the UK to adopt a 20mph speed limit on all residential streets. The city has also adopted the UK's Manual for Streets (MfS) as the design standard for all new priority intersections in low-speed residential areas.Piecewise structural equation models (pSEM) were developed to represent the causal mechanisms that relate to geometries, speeds, speed limits and collisions. Findings indicate the role of combinations of approach lane width, corner radii, speed limit, and type of collision. The interaction of wider approach lanes on the minor arm and larger radii of turns for left-turning vehicles (left-hand driving perspective) was associated with higher numbers of road traffic collisions for right-turning vehicles. It is posited here that this is due to the orientation of the left-turning vehicle blocking the left visibility of the right-turning vehicle. These results give weight to the introduction of the 20mph speed limit zone in Portsmouth and some of the changes brought about by MfS. However, the combined effect of approach width and radii on collisions is novel and could form the basis of further guidance on reducing specific types of collisions at three-arm priority intersections.

Predictors of rural driver self-reported passing behaviors when interacting with farm equipment on the roadway

Background

Crashes involving farm equipment (FE) are a major safety concern for farmers as well as all other users of the public road system in both rural and urban areas. These crashes often involve passenger vehicle drivers striking the farm equipment from behind or attempting to pass, but little is known about drivers' perceived norms and self-reported passing behaviors. The objective of this study is to examine factors influencing drivers' farm equipment passing frequencies and their perceptions about the passing behaviors of other drivers.

Methods

Data were collected via intercept surveys with adult drivers at local gas stations in two small rural towns in Iowa. The survey asked drivers about their demographic information, frequency of passing farm equipment, and perceptions of other drivers' passing behavior in their community and state when approaching farm equipment (proximal and distal descriptive norms). A multinomial logistic regression model was used to estimate the relationship between descriptive norms and self-reported passing behavior.

Results

Survey data from 201 adult drivers showed that only 10% of respondents considered farm equipment crashes to be a top road safety concern. Respondents who perceived others passing farm equipment frequently in their community were more likely to report that they also frequently pass farm equipment. The results also showed interactions between gender and experience operating farm equipment in terms of self-reported passing behavior.

Conclusions/Implications

Results from this study suggest local and state-level norms and perceptions of those norms may be important targets for intervention to improve individual driving behaviors around farm equipment.

Psychological Functioning, Defense Strategies and the Contribution of Perceived Family Collaboration in Adolescents Who Experienced Multiple Motor Vehicle Crashes: A Descriptive Study

Adolescents frequently experience motor vehicle collisions (MVCs). Research has mostly underlined the psychological outcomes, rather than adolescents’ general emotional–behavioral functioning and the role played by family. This study aims to explore the emotional–behavioral functioning, measured with the Youth Self Report (YSR), difficulties to identify and describe emotions, measured with the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), the use of defense strategies, measured with the Response Evaluation Measure for Youth (REM-71), and perceived family collaboration, measured with the Perceived Collective Family scale, in adolescents that have experienced more than three MVCs in a year. N = 150 adolescents who visited an emergency department for MVCs were assessed through self-report questionnaires. Adolescents showed difficulties to identify and describe their emotions and a massive use of defense strategies. Moreover, lower perceived family collaboration predicted adolescents’ alexithymic traits and the massive use of maladaptive defense strategies. These results may be useful in assessing and creating prevention programs for risky driving behaviors in adolescence.

Effects of safe driving climate among friends on prosocial and aggressive driving behaviors of young drivers: The moderating role of traffic locus of control

INTRODUCTION

This study focused on the impact of safe driving climate among friends on prosocial and aggressive driving behaviors for young Chinese drivers, arguing for the moderating role of traffic locus of control.

METHOD

Three hundred and fifty-two young Chinese drivers aged 18 to 25 years agreed to participate in this study and completed the questionnaire, which included items related to safe driving climate among friends, traffic locus of control, and prosocial and aggressive driving behaviors.

RESULTS

Safe driving climate among friends and traffic locus of control had direct effects on prosocial and aggressive driving behaviors. More importantly, internal locus of control moderated the relationship between communication on prosocial driving behavior and the relationship between shared commitment to safe driving and aggressive driving behavior. External locus of control moderated the relationship between social costs and prosocial driving behavior and the relationships between shared commitment to safe driving and prosocial and aggressive driving behaviors. It can be inferred that the effects of safe driving climate on prosocial and aggressive driving behaviors varied with their levels of traffic locus of control.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

This study enriches current theoretical frameworks and may be applied in the development of interventions and training for young drivers from the perspective of safe driving climate among friends and traffic locus of control.

Are there sex differences in crash and crash-related injury between men and women? A 13-year cohort study of young drivers in Australia

BACKGROUND

Young men have long been known to be disproportionately impacted by road crash and crash-related injury compared to young women and older drivers. However, there is limited insight into how sex differences in crash and crash-related injury changes over time as men and women get older and gain more driving experience. To explore sex differences in crash and crash-related injury, we undertook a sex disaggregated analysis in a large longitudinal cohort of over 20,000 young drivers in New South Wales, Australia, for up to 13 years after they first attained their independent car driver licence.

METHODS

DRIVE Study survey data from 2003-04 were linked with police, hospital and deaths data up to 2016. Sex differences were analysed using cumulative incidence curves investigating time to first crash and in negative binominal regression models adjusted for driver demographics and crash risk factors.

RESULTS

After adjusting for demographics and driving exposure, compared with women, men had 1.25 (95% CI 1.18-1.33), 2.07 (1.75-2.45), 1.28 (95% CI 1.13-1.46), 1.32 (95% CI 1.17-1.50) and 1.59 (95% CI 1.43-1.78) times higher rates of any crash, single vehicle crash, crash on streets with a speed limit of 80 km/h or above, crash in wet conditions and crash in the dark, respectively. By contrast, men were less likely to be involved in crashes that resulted in hospitalisation compared to women 0.73 (95% CI 0.55-0.96).

CONCLUSIONS

Young men are at increased risk of crash, and this risk persists as they get older and gain more driving experience. Despite lower risk of crash, women are at higher risk of crash related injury requiring hospitalisation. These differences in men's and women's risk of crash and injury signal the need for better understanding of how sex and/or gender may contribute to risk of crash and injury across the life-course.

Beside and Behind the Wheel: Factors that Influence Driving Stress and Driving Behavior

A large percentage of traffic accidents are due to human errors. Driving behavior and driving stress influence the probability of making these mistakes. Both are influenced by multiple factors, among which might be elements such as age, gender, sleeping hours, or working hours. The objective of this paper is to study, in a real scenario and without forcing the driver’s state, the relationship between driving behavior, driving stress, and these elements. Furthermore, we aim to provide guidelines to improve driving assistants. In this study, we used 1050 driving samples obtained from 35 volunteers. The driving samples correspond to regular commutes from home to the workplace. ANOVA and ANCOVA tests were carried out to check if there are significant differences in the four factors analyzed. Although the results show that driving behavior and driving stress are affected by gender, age, and sleeping hours, the most critical variable is working hours. Drivers with long working days suffer significantly more driving stress compared to other drivers, with the corresponding effect on their driving style. These drivers were the worst at maintaining the safety distance.

Psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Attitudes Toward Accompanied Driving Scale and its relationship with driving styles

The present study aimed to adapt the Attitudes Toward Accompanied Driving Scale (ATADS) to a Chinese drivers sample and to examine its reliability and validity. Five hundred and seventy-two drivers aged 18 to 25 years old were asked to complete the ATADS and a validated Chinese version of the Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory. The factorial structure of the ATADS was examined using exploratory factor analysis (N = 259) and confirmatory factor analysis (N = 313). The validity of the scale was evaluated by examining the associations between the ATADS factors, demographic variables and driving styles. The results showed that both the findings of the EFA and CFA showed a five-factor structure of the ATADS, including tension, relatedness, avoidance, disapproval and anxiety. Second, significant gender differences were found in tension, relatedness, avoidance and anxiety. Third, tension, avoidance, disapproval and anxiety were moderately or weakly correlated with risky, anxious, angry and careful driving styles. Moreover, the number of traffic accidents after the accompanying phase was positively correlated with disapproval and avoidance. The findings supported the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the ATADS and highlighted the adverse effects of young drivers’ negative attitudes toward accompanied driving on their driving styles.

Analysis of factors influencing expressway speeding behavior in China

Based on the characteristics of expressway driving behavior, a punishment avoidance variable is introduced in this study to modify the theory of planned behavior (TPB), and the analysis model of expressway speeding behavior is improved and verified through survey data. The mechanism of the effects of attitude to behavior, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and punishment avoidance on expressway speeding behavior is analyzed. The results show that drivers lack a correct understanding of expressway speeding behavior and that punishment avoidance has a significant effect on expressway speeding behavior. Younger drivers (25–34), men, High income earners, and those who received more penalty points are considered prone to speeding. The study provides valuable contributions to the development of the Chinese version of the expressway speeding analysis model.

Adaptation of the multidimensional driving styles inventory for Spanish drivers: Convergent and predictive validity evidence for detecting safe and unsafe driving styles

The Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory (MDSI; Taubman - Ben-Ari et al., 2004) is a well-known and useful instrument that allows us to identify not only "maladaptive" Driving Styles (DS) in order to modify them, but also "adaptive" DS to encourage safe driving. The aim of this study was to adapt the MDSI to the Spanish spoken in Spain and to the rules and driving habits of Spaniards. The Argentinian version of the MDSI was taken as the source version. The sample consisted of 1173 drivers, who completed the Spanish version of the MDSI. The factor structure was analysed by means of an Exploratory Factor Analysis (AFE) and a Confirmatory Factor Analysis (AFC). The 6-factor structure of the Argentinian version of the MDSI was replicated with higher internal consistency values for each of the DS. The original Argentinian and the Spanish versions share 23 items, indicating a relevant overlap in the construct. A cluster analysis grouped the DS into two groups: maladaptive and adaptive. Significant associations were found between DS measures and demographic variables (gender, age, and education level), driving history and theoretically related constructs like the Domain-Specific Risk-Taking Scale (DOSPERT); Lapses, Errors, Violations; Angry Driving; and Sensitivity to Rewards. The Spanish MDSI provides valid measures that could help us understand complex driving behaviours and promote safe driving.

Interconnection Between Driving Style, Traffic Locus of Control, and Impulsivity in Bulgarian Drivers

The need for research in the field of transport psychology in Bulgaria has become more tangible in recent years, due to both the increased public intolerance to aggressive driving and the very high number of injuries and fatalities in road accidents in the country. The main objective of this study is to investigate the interconnection between Driving style, Traffic locus of control, and the Impulsivity in Bulgarian drivers. A research is conducted in order to examine the relations between the constructs in Bulgarian sample (n = 456, male = 204; female = 252; average age = 37). The results show that there are significant correlations between impulsivity and all driving styles. Positive correlations were found with the maladaptive driving styles, while the adaptive driving style was negatively associated with impulsivity. Correlations between the traffic locus of control and the driving styles were also found. These results provide a very good opportunity for further research in this area as well as for the development of prevention and training programs in the field of road safety.

Personality and Behavioral Predictors of Cyclist Involvement in Crash-Related Conditions

In recent years, the increasing rate of road crashes involving cyclists with a disproportionate overrepresentation in injury statistics has become a major concern in road safety and public health. However, much remains unknown about factors contributing to cyclists’ high crash rates, especially those related to personal characteristics. This study aims to explore the influence of cyclist personality traits and cycling behaviors on their road safety outcomes using a mediated model combining these constructs. A total of 628 cyclists completed an online questionnaire consisting of questions related to cycling anger, impulsiveness, normlessness, sensation seeking, risky cycling behaviors, and involvement in crash-related conditions in the past year. After the psychometric properties of the employed scales were examined, the relationships among the tested constructs were investigated using structural equation modeling. The results showed that cyclists’ crash risks were directly predicted by risky cycling behaviors and cycling anger, and the effects of cycling anger, impulsiveness, as well as normlessness on crash risks, were mediated by cycling behaviors. The current findings provide insight into the importance of personality traits in impacting cycling safety and could facilitate the development of evidence-based prevention and promotion strategies targeting cyclists in China.

The relation between mortality salience, traffic locus of control, and risky driving behavior

This study evaluated the direct relationships between mortality salience (MS), traffic locus of control (T-LOC), and risky driving behavior. The sample included 170 drivers. They completed scales measuring T-LOC, then they were randomly divided into one of the three condition groups: MS condition, traffic accidents MS condition, and the control condition. At the end, the participants completed a scale for measuring risky driving behavior. The results showed that MS interacts with the relevance of driving for self-esteem and with external T-LOC in determining risky driving. The implications of these results for safety and future research are discussed.

Reliability and validity of the Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory in Chinese drivers

OBJECTIVE

The Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory (MDSI) has been widely used in assessing the associations between driving styles and traffic violations and accidents in different cultural contexts. Due to the lack of a valid instrument to assess driving style, studies concerning driving style and its influence factors are limited in China. Thus, this study aimed to adapt and validate a Chinese version of the MDSI.

METHODS

Seven hundred and sixty drivers aged from 19 to 60 years old were asked to complete the MDSI and a personality scale (trait anger, sensation seeking, altruism, and normlessness). Exploratory factory analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were used to obtain the factorial structure of the MDSI. The external validity of the MDSI was then evaluated by examining the associations between driving styles and personality traits, demographic variables, and traffic violations and crashes.

RESULTS

EFA revealed a 6-factor structure of the MDSI (i.e., risky, anxious, angry, distress reduction, careful, and dissociative driving styles). CFA confirmed that the model fit of the MDSI was acceptable. The MDSI factors were moderately or weakly correlated with trait anger, sensation seeking, altruism, and normlessness. Significant gender and age differences in driving styles were found. Moreover, drivers who had traffic violations or crashes in the past year scored higher on risky and angry driving styles and lower on careful driving style than those who had not have traffic violations or crashes.

CONCLUSIONS

The Chinese version of the MDSI proved to be a reliable, valid, and highly useful instrument. It could be used to assess Chinese drivers who are at risk due to their maladaptive driving styles.

How does intersection field of view influence driving safety in an emergent situation?

Restricted intersection field of view (IFOV) can influence drivers' hazard detection abilities and driving safety in an emergent traffic event. However, no field studies or crash-data analyses have been conducted to prove the adequateness of the current intersection sight-distance design standards, which are adopted to ensure that the approaching-intersection drivers have a sufficient field of view to detect traffic hazards and travel safely at intersections. In this study, we conducted a driving simulator experiment to compare drivers' behavioral and eye-movement measures between different IFOV conditions that met the current intersection sight distance design standards. We examined the influencing mechanism of IFOV on the drivers' collision avoidance process being composed of three consequential stages, respectively in terms of search stage, decision stage and action stage. Our experiment results showed that restricted IFOV impacts the three-stage driving performance interlockingly. Enlarging IFOV can significantly improve drivers' performance in detecting a conflicting vehicle more timely, having a longer perception-reaction time in monitoring the hazard, spending more time on observing intersection surroundings, and taking brake actions earlier and more smoothly so that drivers were more likely to successfully avoid colliding with the conflicting vehicle. In addition, we found that compared with female drivers, male drivers were less likely to take brake actions to avoid a potential collision and had a lower deceleration rate in the braking stage of collision avoidance while there was no significant gender difference in crash involvement rates. The findings indicated that male drivers were more skillful in vehicle control than female drivers. Nevertheless, male drivers had less traffic-crash expectation, which degraded their overall crash avoidance effect. Considering the traffic safety that more than five million intersection-related crashes occur in American each year, these experimental findings have implications for public safety and health.

Effect of personality traits on driving style: Psychometric adaption of the multidimensional driving style inventory in a Chinese sample

Driving style is an important factor in driving psychology, which is useful for effectively evaluating driving behaviors. Exploring driving style in a Chinese sample could help understand the overall situation of Chinese drivers. This study aims to develop a measurement of driving style fit for the Chinese situation and to validate the validity and reliability of this scale. In this study, 296 drivers from China completed the Chinese version of the multidimensional driving style inventory (MDSI), the Big Five Inventory (BFI), and the Driver Behavior Questionnaire (DBQ) as well as several questions about socio-demographic information. After testing the assumed structure by a confirmatory factor analysis, and adjusting the structure, a brief version of Chinese version of MDSI with twelve items categorized into four driving styles, namely, risky style, angry- high-velocity style, careful style and anxious style was revised. The validity and reliability of the scales were acceptable. The results showed that driving styles were closely correlated with self-reported driving behaviors. Specifically, risky style, angry- high-velocity style, and anxious style are all positively associated with dangerous driving behaviors. Meanwhile, careful style was positively associated with positive driving behaviors and negatively correlated with dangerous driving behaviors. Anxious was also found to be negatively associated with fines. For personality, we found a positive relationship between risky, angry- high-velocity, careful and anxious styles and the personality traits that often have negative effects on driving, such as extraversion and neuroticism. Meanwhile, these three styles were negatively correlated with conscientiousness and agreeableness in general. In addition, careful style was positively correlated with conscientiousness and agreeableness. The current study shows convincing evidence for the validity and reliability of the brief MDSI-C and develops a useful tool for identify the driving style of Chinese drivers for future research and relevant departments of road safety.

Contributors to young drivers' driving styles - A comparison between Israel and Queensland

Among the numerous factors that contribute to young novice drivers' driving styles, personality characteristics, sociodemographic variables, family atmosphere, and friends' norms are known to have an important impact. However, cross-cultural comparisons are relatively rare in the safety literature concerning young drivers. This study aimed at comparing young drivers from Israel and Queensland (Australia) and examining the contribution of personality, sociodemographic, family and friends' aspects to their driving styles (reckless and careless; hostile and angry; anxious; patient and careful). More specifically, this study examined the associations between young drivers' driving style and their perceptions of separation-individuation, the family climate for road safety, and the safe driving climate among friends. We also examined sociodemographic and driving history variables such as gender, the marital status of parents, and personal exposure to traffic crashes. The study consisted of two samples of male and female young drivers (age 17-22) from Israel (n=160) and Queensland (n=160), who completed a set of valid and reliable self-report questionnaires. Findings indicate that in general, maladaptive driving styles are associated with lower family tendency to engage in promoting road safety, higher pressure and costs of driving with peers, and unhealthier separation-individuation aspects. The opposite is observed for the patient and careful driving style that relates to higher engagement of the family in road safety, lower pressure from friends, and healthier separation-individuation. Some differences were found regarding specific styles between the two samples. In addition, women scored lower than men in the reckless and careless style, and higher (in the Israeli sample) in the anxious as well as the patient and careful styles. Overall, similarities in the associations between the study variables in the samples exceed the differences, and the importance of examining variables on multi-levels when referring to young drivers' driving styles, is confirmed. The findings attest to the universal utility of the MDSI, together with the understanding that only a wider examination of personal and environmental contributors enables true insights into the complex behavior of driving among young drivers.

Changes in Drivers' Visual Performance during the Collision Avoidance Process as a Function of Different Field of Views at Intersections

The intersection field of view (IFOV) indicates an extent that the visual information can be observed by drivers. It has been found that further enhancing IFOV can significantly improve emergent collision avoidance performance at intersections, such as faster brake reaction time, smaller deceleration rate, and lower traffic crash involvement risk. However, it is not known how IFOV affects drivers’ eye movements, visual attention and the relationship between visual searching and traffic safety. In this study, a driving simulation experiment was conducted to uncover the changes in drivers’ visual performance during the collision avoidance process as a function of different field of views at an intersection by using an eye tracking system. The experimental results showed that drivers’ ability in identifying the potential hazard in terms of visual searching was significantly affected by different IFOV conditions. As the IFOVs increased, drivers had longer gaze duration (GD) and more number of gazes (NG) in the intersection surrounding areas and paid more visual attention to capture critical visual information on the emerging conflict vehicle, thus leading to a better collision avoidance performance and a lower crash risk. It was also found that female drivers had a better visual performance and a lower crash rate than male drivers. From the perspective of drivers’ visual performance, the results strengthened the evidence that further increasing intersection sight distance standards should be encouraged for enhancing traffic safety.

The multidimensional driving style inventory a decade later: Review of the literature and re-evaluation of the scale

The Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory (MDSI; Taubman - Ben-Ari, Mikulincer, & Gillath, 2004a), a self-report questionnaire assessing four broad driving styles, has been in use for the last ten years. During that time, numerous studies have explored the associations between the MDSI factors and sociodemographic and driving-related variables. The current paper employs two large data sets to summarize the accumulated knowledge, examining MDSI factors in samples of young drivers aged 17-21 (Study 1, n=1436) and older drivers aged 22-84 (Study 2, n=3409). Findings indicate that driving-related indicators are coherently and systematically related to the four driving styles in the expected directions, revalidating the structure of the MDSI. The results also help clarify the relationships between the driving styles and variables such as gender, ethnicity, car ownership, age, and experience, and suggest that driving styles are largely unaffected by sociodemographic characteristics, except for gender and ethnicity, and appear to represent a relatively stable and universal trait. The two studies highlight the validity and reliability of the MDSI, attesting to its practical value as a tool for purposes of research, evaluation, and intervention.

Testing a structural model of young driver willingness to uptake Smartphone Driver Support Systems

There is growing interest in the potential value of using phone applications that can monitor driver behaviour (Smartphone Driver Support Systems, 'SDSSs') in mitigating risky driving by young people. However, their value in this regard will only be realised if young people are willing to use this technology. This paper reports the findings of a study in which a novel structural model of willingness to use SDSSs was tested. Grounded in the driver monitoring and Technology Acceptance (TA) research literature, the model incorporates the perceived risks and gains associated with potential SDSS usage and additional social cognitive factors, including perceived usability and social influences. A total of 333 smartphone users, aged 18-24, with full Irish driving licenses completed an online questionnaire examining willingness or Behavioural Intention (BI) to uptake a SDSS. Following exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, structural equation modelling indicated that perceived gains and social influence factors had significant direct effects on BI. Perceived risks and social influence also had significant indirect effects on BI, as mediated by perceived gains. Overall, this model accounted for 72.5% of the variance in willingness to uptake SDSSs. Multi-group structural models highlighted invariance of effects across gender, high and low risk drivers, and those likely or unlikely to adopt novel phone app technologies. These findings have implications for our understanding of the willingness of young drivers to adopt and use SDSSs, and highlight potential factors that could be targeted in behavioural change interventions seeking to improve usage rates.

My heart is racing! Psychophysiological dynamics of skilled racecar drivers

Our purpose was to test the multi-action plan model assumptions in which athletes' psychophysiological patterns differ among optimal and suboptimal performance experiences. Nine professional drivers competing in premier race categories (e.g. Formula 3, Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge) completed the study. Data collection involved monitoring the drivers' perceived hedonic tone, accuracy on core components of action, posture, skin temperature, respiration rate and heart rate responses during a 40-lap simulated race. Time marks, gathered at three standardised sectors, served as the performance variable. The A1GP racing simulator (Allinsport, Modena) established a realistic race platform. Specifically, the Barcelona track was chosen because of its inherently difficult nature characterised by intermittent deceleration points. Idiosyncratic analyses showed large individual differences in the drivers' psychophysiological profile, as well as distinct patterns in regards to optimal and suboptimal performance experiences. Limitations and future research avenues are discussed. Action- (e.g. attentional control) and emotion (e.g. biofeedback training)-centred applied sport psychology implications are advanced.

Parents' perceptions of the family climate for road safety

The current study examined the applicability of the Family Climate for Road Safety Scale (FCRSS; Taubman-Ben-Ari and Katz-Ben-Ami, 2013) to the parents of young drivers. The sample consisted of 549 parents and 234 of their children, all of whom completed the FCRSS. In addition, the parents completed the multidimensional driving style inventory (MDSI; Taubman-Ben-Ari et al., 2004) and provided background data (e.g., age, gender). Confirmatory factor analysis supported a slightly modified structure of the scale for parents. Examination of the correlations revealed significant weak to strong associations between parents' scores on the various FCRSS dimensions on the one hand, and their self-reported driving styles and offspring's perceptions of the family climate for safety on the other. The findings indicate that the FCRSS is suitable for use with the parents of young drivers, and that perceptions of the family climate are shared by the two generations. Furthermore, they show that family climate is related to parents' customary driving behavior, with the careful driving style positively related to the positive dimensions of the FCRSS. The discussion stresses the importance of the parents' influence on the manner in which their children drive, and the multifaceted nature of this influence. Moreover, it indicates the potential value of the FCRSS, both for research and for designing interventions and measuring their effectiveness.

Driving styles and their associations with personality and motivation

The associations between driving styles and the Big-Five personality factors and perceived costs and benefits of driving were examined in order to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of driving styles. Questionnaires tapping driving style, personality traits, motivations for driving, and background variables were completed by 320 drivers (150 men and 170 women). The results show that each driving style is associated with a unique set of sociodemographic, personality, and motivational factors. The reckless and angry styles were both endorsed more by men than women, by younger drivers, and by those displaying higher levels of Extroversion and thrill seeking, and lower levels of Agreeableness and Conscientiousness. However, whereas the reckless style was also predicted by the perceived costs of driving-related distress, as well as higher perceived risk to life among those with higher education, the angry style was also predicted by perceptions of both control and annoyance among more educated drivers. The anxious style was endorsed more by women, and by drivers lower on Conscientiousness and higher on Neuroticism. Individuals reporting this style regard driving as a cause of distress and annoyance, and, depending on their level of education, perceive it as entailing more risk to life and as a potential damage to their self-image (higher education), or as providing more opportunities for impression management (lower education). The careful driving style was endorsed more by women, and associated with higher Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness, along with higher pleasure (especially among younger drivers), but lower thrill seeking and worries about damage to self-esteem. The discussion focuses on the importance of looking at driving styles and their predictors holistically in order to design practical interventions suited to different profiles of drivers.

Determining subgroups of teens for targeted driving injury prevention strategies: a latent class analysis approach

OBJECTIVE

To utilize teen traffic safety belief profiles to improve targeting of resources and messages to young novice drivers.

METHODS

The National Young Driver Survey is a nationally representative sample 5665 of 9th to 11th graders in the United States. Using latent class analysis, we grouped beliefs about 25 safety-relevant behaviors into a summary set of belief profiles and related these profiles to demographics and driver/passenger experience.

RESULTS

We determined 5 safety belief profiles of teens: "everything" (rated most of the 25 behaviors as important to safety); "drivers/personal responsibility" (rated driver-related behaviors but few others as important); "driver drinking" (rated only driver alcohol use as always important); "distractions/external forces" (rated predominantly passenger rather than driver issues as important); and "nothing" (rated no issues as important). Three key groups emerged who were more likely than their counterparts to belong to the distractions/external forces than the everything class and for whom targeted messaging might be effective: males, non-white adolescents, and teens who had experienced an injury crash as a driver.

CONCLUSIONS

The classes appear to organize around the locus of control (LOC) social learning framework, with some teens perceiving crashes resulting primarily from their own behavior and others believing that forces in their environment determine the events that result in a crash. Designing interventions that help young drivers understand their role in crashes may help improve the safety behavior of young drivers. In particular, for those involved in crashes, interventions designed to help them understand that the crash was a result of their actions, rather than a random or externally driven event, may influence them to take control with safety-oriented behaviors.