Revisiting the concept of the ‘problem young driver’ within the context of the ‘young driver problem’: Who are they?

For decades there have been two young driver concepts: the ‘young driver problem’ where the driver cohort represents a key problem for road safety; and the ‘problem young driver’ where a sub-sample of drivers represents the greatest road safety problem. Given difficulties associated with identifying and then modifying the behaviour of the latter group, broad countermeasures such as graduated driver licensing (GDL) have generally been relied upon to address the young driver problem. GDL evaluations reveal general road safety benefits for young drivers, yet they continue to be overrepresented in fatality and injury statistics. Therefore it is timely for researchers to revisit the ‘problem young driver’ concept to assess its potential countermeasure implications. This is particularly relevant within the context of broader countermeasures that have been designed to address the ‘young driver problem’ Personal characteristics, behaviours and attitudes of 378 Queensland novice drivers aged 17–25 years were explored during their pre-, Learner and Provisional 1 (intermediate) licence as part of a larger longitudinal project. Self-reported risky driving was measured by the Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale (BYNDS), and five subscale scores were used to cluster the drivers into three groups (high risk n = 49, medium risk n = 163, low risk n = 166). High risk ‘problem young drivers’ were characterised by greater self-reported pre-Licence driving, unsupervised Learner driving, and speeding, driving errors, risky driving exposure, crash involvement, and offence detection during the Provisional period. Medium risk drivers were also characterised by more risky road use than the low risk group. Interestingly problem young drivers appear to have some insight into their high-risk driving, since they report significantly greater intentions to bend road rules in future driving. The results suggest that tailored intervention efforts may need to target problem young drivers within the context of broad countermeasures such as GDL which address the young driver problem in general. Experiences such as crash-involvement could be used to identify these drivers as a preintervention screening measure.     

“I drove after drinking alcohol” and other risky driving behaviours reported by young novice drivers

Background: Volitional risky driving behaviours such as drink- and drug-driving (i.e. substance-impaired driving) and speeding contribute to the overrepresentation of young novice drivers in road crash fatalities, and crash risk is greatest during the first year of independent driving in particular. Aims: To explore the: (1) self-reported compliance of drivers with road rules regarding substance-impaired driving and other risky driving behaviours (e.g., speeding, driving while tired), one year after progression from a Learner to a Provisional (intermediate) licence; and (2) interrelationships between substance-impaired driving and other risky driving behaviours (e.g., crashes, offences, and Police avoidance). Methods: Drivers (n = 1076; 319 males) aged 18–20 years were surveyed regarding their sociodemographics (age, gender) and self-reported driving behaviours including crashes, offences, Police avoidance, and driving intentions. Results: A relatively small proportion of participants reported driving after taking drugs (6.3% of males, 1.3% of females) and drinking alcohol (18.5% of males, 11.8% of females). In comparison, a considerable proportion of participants reported at least occasionally exceeding speed limits (86.7% of novices), and risky behaviours like driving when tired (83.6% of novices). Substance-impaired driving was associated with avoiding Police, speeding, risky driving intentions, and self-reported crashes and offences. Forty-three percent of respondents who drove after taking drugs also reported alcohol-impaired driving. Discussion and Conclusions: Behaviours of concern include drink driving, speeding, novice driving errors such as misjudging the speed of oncoming vehicles, violations of graduated driver licensing passenger restrictions, driving tired, driving faster if in a bad mood, and active punishment avoidance. Given the interrelationships between the risky driving behaviours, a deeper understanding of influential factors is required to inform targeted and general countermeasure implementation and evaluation during this critical driving period. Notwithstanding this, a combination of enforcement, education, and engineering efforts appear necessary to improve the road safety of the young novice driver, and for the drink-driving young novice driver in particular.     

Speeding by young novice drivers: What can personal characteristics and psychosocial theory add to our understanding?

Purpose

Young novice drivers continue to be overrepresented in fatalities and injuries arising from crashes even with the introduction of countermeasures such as graduated driver licensing (GDL). Enhancing countermeasures requires a better understanding of the variables influencing risky driving. One of the most common risky behaviours performed by drivers of all ages is speeding, which is particularly risky for young novice drivers who, due to their driving inexperience, have difficulty in identifying and responding appropriately to road hazards. Psychosocial theory can improve our understanding of contributors to speeding, thereby informing countermeasure development and evaluation. This paper reports an application of Akers’ social learning theory (SLT), augmented by Gerrard and Gibbons’ prototype/willingness model (PWM), in addition to personal characteristics of age, gender, car ownership, and psychological traits/states of anxiety, depression, sensation seeking propensity and reward sensitivity, to examine the influences on self-reported speeding of young novice drivers with a Provisional (intermediate) licence in Queensland, Australia.

Method

Young drivers (n = 378) recruited in 2010 for longitudinal research completed two surveys containing the Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale, and reported their attitudes and behaviours as pre-Licence/Learner (Survey 1) and Provisional (Survey 2) drivers and their sociodemographic characteristics.

Results

An Akers’ measurement model was created. Hierarchical multiple regressions revealed that (1) personal characteristics (PC) explained 20.3%; (2) the combination of PC and SLT explained 41.1%; (3) the combination of PC, SLT and PWM explained 53.7% of variance in self-reported speeding. Whilst there appeared to be considerable shared variance, the significant predictors in the final model included gender, car ownership, reward sensitivity, depression, personal attitudes, and Learner speeding.

Conclusions

These results highlight the capacity for psychosocial theory to improve our understanding of speeding by young novice drivers, revealing relationships between previous behaviour, attitudes, psychosocial characteristics and speeding. The findings suggest multi-faceted countermeasures should target the risky behaviour of Learners, and Learner supervisors should be encouraged to monitor their Learners’ driving speed. Novice drivers should be discouraged from developing risky attitudes towards speeding.     

The effect of family climate on risky driving of young novices: The moderating role of attitude and locus of control

The aim of the study was to examine the relative importance of young novice drivers’ family climate on their driving behavior. A sample of young novice drivers (N = 171) between the age of 17 and 24, who held their permanent (or temporary) driver's license for no longer than one year, participated. The questionnaire included items related to the participants’ family climate, 3 socio-cognitive determinants (i.e., attitude, locus of control and social norm), and risky driving behaviors. We expected both family climate and the socio-cognitive determinants to exert a direct effect on risky driving. Furthermore we hypothesized that the socio-cognitive determinants would moderate the impact of family climate on risky driving. The results showed that the effect of family climate on risky driving only originated from one single factor (i.e., noncommitment). Besides that, the results confirmed the importance of the three socio-cognitive determinants to the degree that attitude, locus of control, and social norm significantly predicted the self-reported risky driving. In line of what we hypothesized, attitude moderated the relationship between noncommitment and risky driving. Lastly, we found an unexpected three-way interaction which indicated that locus of control moderated the relation between noncommitment and risky driving only when young drivers’ attitude was risk-supportive. We recommend scholars and practitioners to take into account the interaction between external sources of influence (such as an individual's family climate) and more personally oriented dispositions (such as an individual's attitude, social norm and locus of control) when trying to explain and change young novices’ risky driving.     

Evaluating the effectiveness of a post-license education program for young novice drivers in Belgium

The disproportionately large number of traffic accidents of young novice drivers highlights the need for an effective driver education program. The Goals for Driving Education (GDE) matrix shows that driver education must target both lower and higher levels of driver competences. Research has indicated that current education programs do not emphasize enough the higher levels, for example awareness and insight. This has raised the importance of insight programs. On the Road (OtR), a Flemish post-license driver education program, is such an insight program that aims to target these higher levels. The program focus is on risky driving behavior like speeding and drink driving. In addition, the program addresses risk detection and risk-related knowledge. The goal of the study was to do an effect evaluation of this insight program at immediate post-test and 2 months follow-up. In addition, the study aimed to generalize the results of this program to comparable programs in order to make usable policy recommendations. A questionnaire based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) was used in order to measure participants’ safety consciousness of speeding and drink driving. Moreover, we focused on risk detection and risk-related knowledge. Participants (N = 366) were randomly assigned to a baseline—follow-up group or a post-test—follow-up group.     

Young novice drivers and the risky behaviours of parents and friends during the Provisional (intermediate) licence phase: A brief report

Purpose

While there is research indicating that many factors influence the young novice driver's increased risk of road crash injury during the earliest stages of their independent driving, there is a need to further understand the relationship between the perceived risky driving behaviour of parents and friends and the risky behaviour of drivers with a Provisional (intermediate) licence.

Method

As part of a larger research project, 378 drivers aged 17–25 years (M = 18.22, SD = 1.59, 113 males) with a Provisional licence completed an online survey exploring the perceived riskiness of their parents’ and friends’ driving, and the extent to which they pattern (i.e. base) their driving behaviour on the driving of their parents and friends.

Results

Young drivers who reported patterning their driving on their friends, and who reported they perceived their friends to be risky drivers, reported more risky driving. The risky driving behaviour of young male drivers was associated with the perceived riskiness of their fathers’ driving, whilst for female drivers the perceived riskiness of their mothers’ driving approached significance.

Conclusions

The development and application of countermeasures targeting the risky behaviour of same-sex parents appears warranted by the robust research findings. In addition, countermeasures need to encourage young people in general to be non-risky drivers; targeting the negative influence of risky peer groups specifically. Social norms interventions may minimise the influence of potentially-overestimated riskiness.     

Parenting adolescent drivers is both a continuation of parenting from earlier periods and an anticipation of a new challenge

Greater parental involvement in the driving process and greater parent-imposed limits on novice adolescent drivers hold promise for reducing driving fatalities. However, relatively little is known about why some parents are more involved in the driving process than others. Driving-specific parenting may be both a continuation of established patterns of parenting and a response to a novel developmental task. Adolescents (n = 242, M age 15.4 years, 49% male) who were enrolled in a drivers’ education courses and their parents (n = 276, 70% mothers) completed questionnaires reporting pre-driving parenting styles and monitoring behaviors; the adolescents’ previous driving experiences; perceptions of risks for novice adolescent drivers; attitudes regarding parental involvement; and expected levels of limit-setting and autonomy attainment once adolescents begins driving. Parents’ and adolescents’ involvement attitudes and expectations for limits on driving and autonomy attainment were linked in multivariate models with established patterns of parenting and perceptions of risk. The discussion emphasizes implications for prevention and intervention efforts to increase parental involvement and limits.     

Confirmatory factor analysis of the Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale (BYNDS)

Purpose

The greatly increased risk of being killed or injured in a car crash for the young novice driver has been recognised in the road safety and injury prevention literature for decades. Risky driving behaviour has consistently been found to contribute to traffic crashes. Researchers have devised a number of instruments to measure this risky driving behaviour. One tool developed specifically to measure the risky behaviour of young novice drivers is the Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale (BYNDS) (Scott-Parker et al., 2010). The BYNDS consists of 44 items comprising five subscales for transient violations, fixed violations, misjudgement, risky driving exposure, and driving in response to their mood. The factor structure of the BYNDS has not been examined since its development in a matched sample of 476 novice drivers aged 17–25 years.

Method

The current research attempted to refine the BYNDS and explore its relationship with the self-reported crash and offence involvement and driving intentions of 390 drivers aged 17–25 years (M = 18.23, SD = 1.58) in Queensland, Australia, during their first 6 months of independent driving with a Provisional (intermediate) driver's licence. A confirmatory factor analysis was undertaken examining the fit of the originally proposed BYNDS measurement model.

Results

The model was not a good fit to the data. A number of iterations removed items with low factor loadings, resulting in a 36-item revised BYNDS which was a good fit to the data. The revised BYNDS was highly internally consistent. Crashes were associated with fixed violations, risky driving exposure, and misjudgement; offences were moderately associated with risky driving exposure and transient violations; and road-rule compliance intentions were highly associated with transient violations.

Conclusions

Applications of the BYNDS in other young novice driver populations will further explore the factor structure of both the original and revised BYNDS. The relationships between BYNDS subscales and self-reported risky behaviour and attitudes can also inform countermeasure development, such as targeting young novice driver non-compliance through enforcement and education initiatives.     

Can the traffic locus of control (T-LOC) scale be successfully used to predict Swedish drivers’ speeding behaviour?

The first aim of the present study was to examine the factor structure of the traffic locus of control (T-LOC) scale in a Swedish sample of drivers. The second aim was to examine if this scale can be used to predict drivers’ speeding behaviour. A sample of Swedish car owners (N = 223) completed a questionnaire including questions based on the traffic locus of control (T-LOC) scale as well as questions about their speeding behaviour. The results showed a five factor solution including own skills, own behaviour, other drivers, vehicle/environment and fate. Own behaviour and vehicle/environment could be used to predict drivers’ speeding behaviour on roads with a 90 km/h speed limit while none of the variables included in the traffic locus of control (T-LOC) scale could be used to predict drivers’ speeding behaviour on roads with a 50 km/h speed limit. On 90 km/h roads own behaviour was positively related to drivers’ speeding behaviour while vehicle/environment was negatively related to their speeding behaviour.     

Evaluating a novice driver and pre-driver road safety intervention

Intervention or evaluation studies represent a small proportion of traffic psychology research. The current study evaluated the effectiveness of a road safety intervention by measuring attitudes toward unsafe driving behaviors and risk perception. A sample of high school students (n = 133) participated in a road safety intervention program focusing on attitudes and risk perceptions of young people as novice drivers, pre-drivers, and passengers. This sample was compared with a matched sample of students who did not take the program (n = 172) on their attitudes and perceived risk toward unsafe driving, both prior to the program (T1), immediately after the program (T2), and at 6-week follow-up (T3). While no changes in attitudes toward unsafe driving were found for the control group, the intervention group reported riskier attitudes toward unsafe driving behaviors from T1 to T2 and T3. No differences were found from T1 to T3 in perceived risk toward unsafe driving for either the intervention or control groups. Implications of the study include encouraging a higher rate of road safety program evaluations, leading to better understanding of the effectiveness of road safety intervention programs and how they may be designed and delivered to ensure lower engagement in unsafe driving behaviors by young drivers.     

How reinforcement sensitivity and perceived risk influence young drivers’ reported engagement in risky driving behaviors

Gray's reinforcement sensitivity theory (RST), implementing Carver and White's behavior inhibition system (BIS) and behavior approach system (BAS) scales, was used to predict reported engagement in 10 risky driving behaviors: speeding (2 levels), driving under the influence of alcohol, racing other vehicles, cell phone use (hand-held and hands free), tailgating, unsafe overtaking, driving while fatigued, and not wearing a seatbelt. Participants were 165 young male and female (n = 101) drivers aged 17–25 years who held a valid Australian driver's license. Effects of the explanatory variables and specific risk perceptions upon engagement in the reported risky driving behaviors were examined using SEM analyses. Also of interest was whether perceived risk mediated the relationship between the personality variables and reported engagement in risky driving behaviors. RST variables, negative reactivity, reward responsiveness and fun seeking, accounted for unique variance in young drivers’ perceived risk. Reward responsiveness and perceived risk accounted for unique variance in young drivers’ reported engagement in risky driving behaviors. Negative reactivity was completely mediated by perceived risk in its negative relationship with reported engagement. To better understand driving related risk decision making, future research could usefully incorporate drivers’ motivation systems. This has the potential to lead to more tailored approaches to identifying risk-prone drivers and provide information for the development and implementation of media campaigns and educational programs.     

Traffic violations in Guangdong Province of China: Speeding and drunk driving

The number of speeding- and drunk driving-related injuries in China surged in the years immediately preceding 2004 and then began to decline. However, the percent decrease in the number of speeding and drunk driving incidents (decrease by 22%) is not proportional to the corresponding percent decrease in number of automobile accident-related injuries (decrease by 47%) from the year 2004 to 2010 (Traffic Management Bureau, Ministry of Public Security, Annual Statistical Reports on Road Traffic Accidents). Earlier studies have established traffic violations as one of the major risks threatening road safety. In this study, we examine in greater detail two important types of traffic violation events, speeding and drunk driving, and attempt to identify significant risk factors associated with these types of traffic violations. Risk factors in several different dimensions, including driver, vehicle, road and environmental factors, are considered. We analyze the speeding (N = 11,055) and drunk driving (N = 10,035) data for the period 2006–2010 in Guangdong Province, China. These data, obtained from the Guangdong Provincial Security Department, are extracted from the Traffic Management Sector-Specific Incident Case Data Report and are the only comprehensive and official source of traffic accident data in China. Significant risk factors associating with speeding and drunk driving are identified. We find that several factors are associated with a significantly higher probability of both speeding and drunk driving, particularly male drivers, private vehicles, the lack of street lighting at night and poor visibility. The impact of other specific and unique risk factors for either speeding or drunk driving, such as hukou, road type/grades, commercial vehicles, compulsory third party insurance and vehicle safety status, also require particular attention. Legislative or regulatory measures targeting different vehicle types and/or driver groups with respect to the various driver, vehicle, road and environmental risk factors can subsequently be devised to reduce the speeding and drunk driving rates. As the country with the highest number of traffic accident fatalities in the world, applying these findings in workable legislation and enforcement to reduce speeding and drunk driving rates will save tens of thousands of lives.     

Validation of the Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale (BYNDS) in a New Zealand young driver population

The Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale, the BYNDS (Scott-Parker et al., 2010), is a reliable and valid self-report 44-item instrument which explores the frequency of a breadth of risky driving behaviours which appear to place young and novice drivers at an increased risk of road crash injury. As part of a larger collaborative research project, the Australian-developed BYNDS was piloted in a sample of 20 young New Zealand drivers n = 14 aged 16–18 years, 9 males; n = 6 aged 19–24 years, 2 males. The wording of 21 BYNDS items was modified to reflect the cultural context of the participating New Zealand drivers. The refined BYNDS was applied in a sample of 325 young drivers n = 116 aged 16–18 years, 65 males; n = 209 aged 19–24 years, 98 males, and the factor structure examined, including exploratory factor analysis for each gender. The 5-factor structure of the BYNDS was supported, with young drivers reporting considerable engagement in risky driving exposure, moderate engagement in transient violations and mood-related driving, and less fixed violations and driving misjudgements. Risky driving exposure was predictive of self-reported crash involvement for both males and females, suggesting targeted intervention regarding when, and the circumstances under which, the young driver is on the road.     

The perceptions of young rural drivers in NSW,Australia of speeding and associated risk: A mixed methods study

The study, using mixed methodology, examined perceptions of risk associated with speeding in young rural people. Focus groups discussions (age range 16–24) in which speeding was identified as often being an involuntary driving behaviour, informed the development of a survey instrument. The survey was conducted with two groups of young people, one rural (n = 217) and another semi-rural (n = 235). The results from both the focus groups and surveys indicate that young rural drivers had specific attitudes to speeding, when compared with other risk factors for crashing. Speeding behaviour was viewed as both acceptable and inevitable. Males and those from a rural area viewed speeding, and reducing trip time when compared to that of a peer, to be less risky than did females and those who lived in a semi-rural area. Speeding was considered to be less risky than drink driving. These perceptions of speeding may contribute to the crash rates on rural roads involving young, local drivers and need to be considered in interventions or educational programmes which aim to reduce the rural road crash rate.     

Personality and attitudes as predictors of risky driving among older drivers

Although there are several studies on the effects of personality and attitudes on risky driving among young drivers, related research in older drivers is scarce. The present study assessed a model of personality-attitudes-risky driving in a large sample of active older drivers. A cross-sectional design was used, and structured and anonymous questionnaires were completed by 485 older Italian drivers (Mean age = 68.1, SD = 6.2, 61.2% males). The measures included personality traits, attitudes toward traffic safety, risky driving (errors, lapses, and traffic violations), and self-reported crash involvement and number of issued traffic tickets in the last 12 months. Structural equation modeling showed that personality traits predicted both directly and indirectly traffic violations, errors, and lapses. More positive attitudes toward traffic safety negatively predicted risky driving. In turn, risky driving was positively related to self-reported crash involvement and higher number of issued traffic tickets. Our findings suggest that theoretical models developed to account for risky driving of younger drivers may also apply in the older drivers, and accordingly be used to inform safe driving interventions for this age group.     

Do drivers become less risk-prone after answering a questionnaire on risky driving behaviour?

Two studies showed that answering a questionnaire regarding self-reported risky driving behaviour and attitudes led to a significant (p < 0.001) decrease in self-reported risky driving behaviour at a follow-up some five weeks after answering the first questionnaire. In Study I participants (193 men, 18-20 years old) also reported more concern about hurting others, increased subjective probability of accidents, but less thinking about injuries at follow-up. In Study 2 (149 men, 18-19 years old) effects on attitudes at follow-up were not tested. The results are discussed in terms of the question-behaviour effect, that is, questioning a person about a certain behaviour can influence his future performance of that behaviour. Assuming that most young male drivers essentially disapprove of traffic violations, it is argued that answering the questionnaire served as an intervention that made attitudes more accessible and led to a polarization towards stronger disapproval of traffic violations, which in turn influenced reported risky driving behaviour. The need to develop alternative instruments for evaluating effects of experimental traffic safety interventions is also discussed.     

Evidence that implementation intentions reduce drivers’ speeding behavior: Testing a new intervention to change driver behavior

Implementation intentions have the potential to break unwanted habits and help individuals behave in line with their goal intentions. We tested the effects of implementation intentions in the context of drivers’ speeding behavior. A randomized controlled design was used. Speeding behavior, goal intentions and theoretically derived motivational pre-cursors of goal intentions were measured at both baseline and follow-up (one month later) using self-report questionnaires. Immediately following the baseline questionnaire, the experimental (intervention) group (N = 117) specified implementation intentions using a volitional help sheet, which required the participants to link critical situations in which they were tempted to speed with goal-directed responses to resist the temptation. The control group (N = 126) instead received general information about the risks of speeding. In support of the hypotheses, the experimental group reported exceeding the speed limit significantly less often at follow-up than did the control group. This effect was specific to ‘inclined abstainers’ (i.e., participants who reported speeding more than they intended to at baseline and were therefore motivated to reduce their speeding) and could not be attributed to any changes in goal intentions to speed or any other measured motivational construct. Also in line with the hypotheses, implementation intentions attenuated the past-subsequent speeding behavior relationship and augmented the goal intention – subsequent speeding behavior relationship. The findings imply that implementation intentions are effective at reducing speeding and that they do so by weakening the effect of habit, thereby helping drivers to behave in accordance with their existing goal intentions. The volitional help sheet used in this study is an effective tool for promoting implementation intentions to reduce speeding.     

Effects of excessive speeding and falling asleep while driving on crash injury severity in Ethiopia: A generalized ordered logit model analysis

The severity of injury from vehicle crash is a result of a complex interaction of factors related to drivers’ behavior, vehicle characteristics, road geometric and environmental conditions. Knowing to what extent each factor contributes to the severity of an injury is very important. The objective of the study was to assess factors that contribute to crash injury severity in Ethiopia. Data was collected from June 2012 to July 2013 on one of the main and busiest highway of Ethiopia, which extends from the capital Addis Ababa to Hawassa. During the study period a total of 819 road crashes was recorded and investigated by trained crash detectors. A generalized ordered logit/partial proportional odds model was used to examine factors that might influence the severity of crash injury. Model estimation result suggested that, alcohol use (Coef. = 0.5565; p-value = 0.017), falling asleep while driving (Coef. = 1.3102; p-value = 0.000), driving at night time in the absence of street light (Coef. = 0.3920; p-value = 0.033), rainfall (Coef. = 0.9164; p-value = 0.000) and being a minibus or vans (Coef. = 0.5065; p-value = 0.013) were found to be increased crash injury severity. On the other hand, speeding was identified to have varying coefficients for different injury levels, its highest effects on sever and fatal crashes. In this study risky driving behaviors (speeding, alcohol use and sleep/fatigue) were a powerful predictor of crash injury severity. Therefore, better driver licensing and road safety awareness campaign complimented with strict police enforcement can play a pivotal role to improve road safety. Further effort needed as well to monitor speed control strategies like; using the radar control and physical speed restraint measures (i.e., rumble strips).     

The effects of texting on driving performance in a driving simulator: The influence of driver age

Distracted driving is a significant contributor to motor vehicle accidents and fatalities, and texting is a particularly significant form of driver distraction that continues to be on the rise. The present study examined the influence of driver age (18–59 years old) and other factors on the disruptive effects of texting on simulated driving behavior. While ‘driving’ the simulator, subjects were engaged in a series of brief text conversations with a member of the research team. The primary dependent variable was the occurrence of Lane Excursions (defined as any time the center of the vehicle moved outside the directed driving lane, e.g., into the lane for oncoming traffic or onto the shoulder of the road), measured as (1) the percent of subjects that exhibited Lane Excursions, (2) the number of Lane Excursions occurring and (3) the percent of the texting time in Lane Excursions. Multiple Regression analyses were used to assess the influence of several factors on driving performance while texting, including text task duration, texting skill level (subject-reported), texting history (#texts/week), driver gender and driver age. Lane Excursions were not observed in the absence of texting, but 66% of subjects overall exhibited Lane Excursions while texting. Multiple Regression analysis for all subjects (N = 50) revealed that text task duration was significantly correlated with the number of Lane Excursions, and texting skill level and driver age were significantly correlated with the percent of subjects exhibiting Lane Excursions. Driver gender was not significantly correlated with Lane Excursions during texting. Multiple Regression analysis of only highly skilled texters (N = 27) revealed that driver age was significantly correlated with the number of Lane Excursions, the percent of subjects exhibiting Lane Excursions and the percent of texting time in Lane Excursions. In contrast, Multiple Regression analysis of those drivers who self-identified as not highly skilled texters (N = 23) revealed that text task duration was significantly correlated with the number of Lane Excursions. The present studies confirm past reports that texting impairs driving simulator performance. Moreover, the present study demonstrates that for highly skilled texters, the effects of texting on driving are actually worse for older drivers. Given the increasing frequency of texting while driving within virtually all age groups, these data suggest that ‘no texting while driving’ education and public service messages need to be continued, and they should be expanded to target older drivers as well.     

Thrill and Adventure Seeking as a modifier of the relationship of perceived risk with risky driving among young drivers

Risky driving contributes to road trauma, a leading cause of mortality among young people. Health-relevant behaviour models suggest a negative relationship between risky driving and perceived risk of its outcomes. However, high sensation seekers may value the “thrill” of the risk, and positive associations between sensation seeking and risky driving have been observed. This is the first study to examine whether aspects of sensation seeking modify the relationship between perceived risk and risky driving. Young drivers in metropolitan Sydney and rural New South Wales [NSW] (n = 797) completed a survey relating to one of the four risky driving behaviours (speeding, drink-driving, driving while fatigued, and failing to wear a seatbelt). Results suggest that the Thrill and Adventure Seeking subscale of Zuckerman's (1994) Sensation Seeking Scale moderate the relationship of perceived risk with risky driving – indicating a negative relationship for low-scores, but not high-scorers, on the TAS subscale. Thus, road safety campaigns that emphasize the riskiness of a particular behaviour may be of limited benefit to thrill and adventure seekers.