Attitude & Aggression

Back to Basics on the Road

 

This is an exciting and relevant article by Keith Howes for the Cyprus Mail, reproduced at DSA with their permission.

 


 

 

Report from the Seminar on Aggressive Driving Behaviour

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe

Palais des Nations, Geneva

April 5, 2004

 

 

Click here

 

 


 

 

According to a report sponsored by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, at least 1,500 men, women, and children are injured or killed yearly in the United States due to “aggressive driving.” As might be expected, most aggressive drivers are relatively young, relatively poorly educated males with criminal records, histories of violence, and drug or alcohol problems. In addition, many of these individuals have recently suffered an emotional or professional setback, such as losing a job or a girlfriend, going through a divorce, or having suffered an injury or an accident. As a result, it is not unusual for friends and relatives to describe these individuals as “odd,” “disenfranchised,” or “a loner.”

 


 

Monash University (MUARC) produced a contract report for the Australian Federal Office of Road Safety titled ‘Driver Aggression: The Role of Personality, social characteristics, risk, and Motivation.’ View the full report as a PDF.

 


 

An article on the FiA website shows the European view of aggressive driving in the USA. Click here to view it.

 


 

Cheryl Jensen wrote an interesting article on Road Rage for the American Woman Road and Travel website. Please read it here.

 


 

‘A Line on Life’ is an online article, about Road Rage, by David A. Gershaw, Ph.D.

 


 

‘Road Rage — A Deadly Threat,’ by Bob Van Elsberg.

 


 

At another extreme, whenever people wish to learn about advanced driving, the misconception exists among potential trainees and many so-called instructors that this should consist of track sessions to learn high-speed driving and evasive maneuvers. Still, people who think this way are missing the point. Excellent driving — in the context of safe driving on public roads — is almost entirely about having the correct attitude, not an array of racetrack tactics. Racing drivers are brilliant on racetracks, but that is where many of their skills should remain. Some of those skills are positively dangerous if used on public roads.

 

At a more fundamental level, but still linked to this vital aspect of attitude, most drivers have several bad habits, best illustrated by an opinion poll by the ‘Drive for Life’ campaign. You may read either our summary of the figures or the full report.