Automobile Driving

Systematic desensitization and hypnosis mediated therapy share empirical evidence of efficacy in the treatment of specific phobias. However, a review of the literature indicated there is limited documentation in the employment of these modalities for treating driving related phobias (DRP). This article reports on the use of hypnosis aided systematic desensitization (HASD) in the successful treatment of a case of non-accident related driving phobia, specifically manifested on Interstate 95 (I-95).

PURPOSE: This study examined the short-term effects of risky driving motor vehicle television commercials on risk-positive attitudes, emotions and risky driving inclinations in video-simulated critical road traffic situations among males and females, within an experimental design. METHOD: Participants were randomly assigned to one of three televised commercial advertising conditions embedded in a television show: a risky driving motor vehicle commercial condition, a non-risky driving motor vehicle commercial condition and a control non-motor vehicle commercial condition.

PURPOSE: Aggressive driving is a growing problem worldwide. Previous research has provided us with some insights into the characteristics of drivers prone to aggressiveness on the road and into the external conditions triggering such behavior. Little is known, however, about the personality traits of aggressive drivers. The present study proposes planned behavior and materialism as predictors of aggressive driving behavior. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY: Data was gathered using a questionnaire-based survey of 220 individuals from twelve large industrial organizations in Israel.

Research has shown that inexperienced drivers underestimate the risks associated with a range of driving situations. In addition, personality factors are an important influence on both risk perceptions and driving behaviour. The study investigated the strength of relationship between personality factors, risk perceptions, and driving behaviour among young, mainly inexperienced drivers. One-hundred and fifty-nine students aged between 17 and 20 completed an online questionnaire assessing five facets of personality, four components of risk perceptions, and one measure of driving behaviour.

The present study aimed to identify, in a large Italian sample of young, novice drivers, specific subtypes of drivers on the basis of combinations of self-reported personality traits (i.e., driving anger, anxiety, angry hostility, excitement-seeking, altruism, normlessness and driving locus of control) and to evaluate their high-risk driving behaviors not only in terms of traffic rule violations and risk-taking behaviors, but also in terms of driving errors and lapses as measured by the Manchester Driver Behavior Questionnaire.

Evidence suggests that in addition to demographics, there are strong relationships between facets of drivers' personality (e.g., aggression, thrill-seeking, altruism), aversion to risk and driving behaviour, particularly speeding. However, evidence is muted by the reliance on self-reported driving behaviour, which is thought to not accurately reflect actual driving behaviour. This paper reports on a study of 133 drivers in Sydney, who were asked to complete a short survey to develop their personality and risk aversion profiles and self-reported speeding behaviour.

OBJECTIVE: Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of injury-related fatalities in China and pose the most serious threat to driving safety. Driver personality is considered as an effective predictor for risky driving behavior and accident liability. Previous studies have focused on the relationship between personality and risky driving behavior, but only a few of them have explored the effects of personality variables on accident involvement. In addition, few studies have examined the effects of personality on Chinese drivers' risky driving and accident involvement.

The relationship between stress and road safety has been studied for many years, but the effect of global stress and its joint effect with personality on driving behavior have received little attention in previous studies. This study aimed to elucidate the impact of global stress and various personality traits on driving behavior. 242 drivers completed the Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10), the Dula Dangerous Driving Index (DDDI), and several personality trait scales related to anger, sensation seeking, and altruism.

Several studies have shown that personality traits and attitudes toward traffic safety predict aberrant driving behaviors and crash involvement. However, this process has not been adequately investigated in professional drivers, such as bus drivers. The present study used a personality-attitudes model to assess whether personality traits predicted aberrant self-reported driving behaviors (driving violations, lapses, and errors) both directly and indirectly, through the effects of attitudes towards traffic safety in a large sample of bus drivers.

When most of the driving tasks are performed automatically, a driver's level of alertness may decline, as has been pointed out in the study of the phenomenon called 'highway hypnosis'. One possible countermeasure is to periodically vary the speed (Wertheim 1978), but the authors have not found any studies that directly assess the effectiveness of this countermeasure. The objective of our study has been to provide empirical evidence regarding the effects of this strategy on the level of driver activation on a motorway route in real traffic.