labreport.htmlwas corresponding to a minor on the Internet. There were sexual conversations. This lead to the gentleman sending the young girl nude photographs of himself as well as he flying to her city to see her. It just made me realize the awesomeness of the Internet system. It is a system that is accessible to millions of people exchanging information on countless topics. Through this case I learned that there is a sort of Internet Police System. If one has any sexual exchange of words or conversations with a minor, that person can be sent to jail. It made me feel better knowing that at least some type of laws are being put on the Internet, but it also raised a lot of questions. What if the other person does not know that the person they are corresponding with is a minor? Maybe, if they knew that the person was a minor, they would not be corresponding in any sexual way. Then, again, I personally feel that no one should have sexual conversations on the Internet.

Dr. James also brought up the accordion effect. This happens when a group of cars are driving very close to each other. They are driving so close that there is not enough space or room for a person to stop in time to not hit the person ahead of them. They would need to brake earlier in order to prevent a collision but because they are driving so close they hit the car in front of them and the car behind them hits them because of the closeness of the proximity of the cars. It has a kind of domino effect. This has made me very aware of how close I drive to other cars. Generally, I am a very aggressive driver and I do not pay attention to tailgating other people but, one never knows when an accident may occur or if the driver ahead of you has to stop. I never really paid much attention to other drivers. This will help me to be a safer and cautious driver as driving accidents are one of the leading causes for death in America.

Another issue of interest was an example that Dr. James had given. He had spoken about a conversation that he and his wife had while he was driving. Dr. James was driving a bit fast because of the person behind him or to the side of him. His wife had mentioned to him that she did not like him to drive so fast. He had replied that he was driving this way because of the other driver. She had asked him to stop and he didn't because of the other driver's feelings. She asked him why was the feelings of the other person more important than hers. This was a good question. Why would someone care more about the feelings of someone he did not know than he cared about his own wife's? I see this in the way many people drive. One conclusion that I came up with was that maybe it was not either of their feelings that he was primarily caring about. Maybe the feelings that he was following were his own. The other driver was driving fast and so must he. Maybe he was protecting his ego or image. I am not saying that this was the case, but maybe subconsciously this is what had happened. This is not a case rare to Dr. James. I have noticed reaction amongst my peers and relatives as well as myself on occasion.

Report 1b

Generational Curriculum Paper

The person's whose paper I read was named Patricia Jung. (I wonder if there's any relation to Dr. Carl Jung, the famous psychologist.) Patricia had brought up some very interesting ideas in her papers.

over-confidence phenomenon

One paper talked about the over-confidence phenomenon. This phenomenon is when a person has a great deal of confidence. He has so much confidence that he does not thing that anything he does is wrong. They block out criticism from others as well as any other information that may hurt their ego. They will only take in information that will add to their esteem. This carries over to their driving. They are so confident in the way that they drive that any accident that should occur is the other driver's fault. This made me think, "Hey, am I like that?" the answer to this was, yes, I am, sometimes. I really need to listen to other people as I drive or in any other areas of my life. The only reason they are telling me these things is so that I may improve. I won't automatically do everything that everyone tells me, but I'll at least consider it and use it to help me. Many times, this is the type of thinking that people need to have instead of getting offended, especially if it comes from someone who cares a great deal for that person.

Foot-in-the-Door Phenomenon

Patricia also talked about the foot-in-the-door phenomenon. This happens when a person who agrees to a small request has the tendency to comply to a larger request at a later time. This greatly interested me because I see this phenomenon happen in my household. I live with 12 other people that attend UH. I drive one of the few cars that we have on campus. Many times someone will ask for a ride to school. Later on that person will ask for a ride to the market and then a ride to their home in Waianae or Waipahu. I do not mind much when they ask, if they do not make me late, but sometimes I end up being late to class or to work. I get frustrated but I hold it in. I need to learn how to let it out more, I guess.

Report 1c

Internet Activities

My Internet experience and telnet experience has been a wild one. I try to log on at home because I now have my computer and modem at my house instead of my mother's house, but the lines are always busy and at all hours of the day. This can be very frustrating. I have learned how to use NETSCAPE. Boy, that made me feel so awesome. It is similar to Mosaic but with a few differences. EMACS started out difficult but after a while, I started to pick up slowly. Many times I would get frustrated but I remember my past experiences and how frustrations did not help. I will keep this in mind as I continue.

Lab Report 2

Report 2a

Class Exercise 1

We have given a summary and our thoughts of generation curriculum reports that we have read. These are reports done by previous psychology 409 students of Dr. James. From reading these summaries and sharing our thoughts about them, I have learned about driving psychology. There are many types of phenomena that occur that I did not even knew existed. I could see them happening such as the accordion effect mentioned in my lab report 1b. With having knowledge about the different types of driving persona and phenomena, one can learn how to improve one's driving as well as improve his/her relationship with other drivers on the road.

Suggestions

Maybe if people get actively involved or do a study of themselves or other drivers regarding the phenomena we have discussed, people will be able to improve their driving kills as well as the skills of others. But, we must always remember that whenever we try to help someone we must do it in a gentle and kind manner. This should never be done in an accusatory manner or in a harsh manner. This would also depend on the type of person that you are wanting to help. If that person is a very straight forward person, be straight forward with them n a nice way. I have found this to be most effective.

World Wide Web you can access all sorts of information. I no longer need to go to the library to do any research if I don't want. I can get the same type of information on the web without having to physically go anywhere. Because I have a modem, I can do it all in the comfort of my own home. Sometimes, though, this can be a disadvantage as I may get too comfortable and not want to do anything. I may also get too distracted with the things going on at home. The most important of my suggestions is that every get a home computer system and modem of their own.

Lab Report 2b

My Driving Persona

This should be a real challenge to do because many times people are so easy to analyze others and not so quick to analyze themselves.

Aggressive Driver

I see that I am an aggressive type of driver. Whenever I see an opportunity to take chances, I take them. I notice that I am even more aggressive a driver than the men in my home. Because of this, I feel that gender has some part to play in aggressive driving but not a great deal.

Over-confident Driver

This is a category that I know I fit in. I feel that an aggressive driver and an over-confident driver go hand in hand. Many times if someone is confident in there driving, they will tend to be more aggressive in their ways. For example, when I need to cut into a lane with traffic, I just kind of force the other driver to let me in by nudging the front of my car in any little space that I see. Another example of this is when I need to switch lanes and there is a car next to me that doesn't want to let me in, I speed up, pass the car, and cut right in front of them.

I do not do this type of driving all the time. I only do this when I am in a great hurry to get somewhere if I am late or something of that sort. Many times, I also am a courteous driver, letting people onto my lane or something like that.

Weekly Homework Assignments

Week 4

Netscape and Lynx

As I had mentioned earlier, I had taken Dr. James' Psy 409 class dealing with the Internet. I do have some computer experience because of having taken this class but, during the course of the class I opted to use Mosaic instead of Lynx. Mosaic which is now called Netscape is a very user friendly program. It is very appealing to the eye, therefore, I enjoyed using it. Lynx, however, is a different story. Sometimes it takes quite a while to wait for the Lynx program as is does its searches.

Lab Session Evaluation

I have found that it is much more helpful to start your computer lab sessions very calmly and to remain that way during the progression of your session. When I first dial in to telnet I dial into the address that Dr. James had given us to access his home page. From there my navigational process is quite easy especially with the links numbered. It is a much easier process to type in the link number than to keep tabbing to the next link. Because I have to reference our home pages and lab reports so often, it has become quite automatic. Sometimes, I do not even need to think of the number. My fingers just automatically do the walking without any kind of conscious effort on my part.

Searches

I haven't done any searches for anything specific at this point. The majority of my time spent during my sessions have been to learn how to create my html file as well as how to do links, anchor, and type up my report on EMACS. Normally, if I have to do a search, for example, if I were looking for information on whales, I would start at the web home page and continue my search from there.

Many times I just have to stop and take a breather when I have been on the Internet too long or if I feel like I am getting frustrated. I find that it makes a big difference because I do not get frustrated as easy nor do I develop any actual physical ailments such as backpains, headaches, or eyeaches.

Advice

The only real valuable type of advice I can give is to be calm about everything. I know it is a lot easier to say than to do but, try not to get frustrated or angry. You'll find that your sessions run much smoother that way. You also may find that you can spend more time on the computer. If do your work from home, take that occasional break and have a nice drink or take a short nap or watch some T.V. It makes a difference. If you're doing your work at school, take some time to look at the beautiful scenery that we have in Hawaii or take a walk around our campus. It really is quite nice. My main point is: DO NOT GET FRUSTRATED OR ANGRY, IF YOU THINK YOU'RE GETTING THERE, TAKE A BREAK!! See ya later and enjoy this awesome program that allows you access to endless information.

Homework Assignment Week 5

a name="accomplishment">Accomplishment

By the end of her papers, Patricia seemed much more comfortable with driving. She did not seem to have as much of a negative feeling of driving as she did during her beginning papers. From what it sounded like, Patricia became more knowledgeable about driving and her own driving pattern. She was able to work her persona and change it, even if only a little, to make it better.

Learning Experiences

Through Patricia's papers and her own evaluation of herself, I was able to also do an evaluation of my self. I learned about the different types of driving personas there are. I have discovered that I am an aggressive, over-confident person. This does not only apply to my driving but, it applies to other areas of my life also. This may allow me to possibly change my driving patter and to be more patient and calm much like how I have learned to be on the computer. This will lessen my chances of getting irritated while driving.

Previously, I thought of driving as being a waste of time. I guess that is why I always rushed while driving. Now, I have learned to relax a bit more and enjoy the drive. Many times, the only time I get to myself is when I am driving. I have come to look forward to these times as spending time with God as well as myself. Of course, this should never take away from the times that I should spend with God away from all of my responsibilities.

Suggestions

For the future students of Dr. James who need to read these reports, I suggest that you do it with the intent of using those terms as they apply to you. (only if they are applicable, of course) Really read what the person has gone through and try to place yourself in that same situation. How would you have reacted? What would you have done? If there are any terms or phenomenon that the student is taking about, does it apply to you? Are you that kind of person?

When reading these papers, also do an analysis of yourself. Maybe you'd be able to work on some of those areas of your driving that you could improve on. Try to change your attitude of maintain your attitude to a positive one while you drive. You'll be surprised how much of a difference this makes. You'll be having a much better day as well as making it a nicer day for the other driver.

Links to other studentsŒ reports

If you would really like to look at some incredible lab reports check these out.See Todd's Report.See Jae's Report See KaneshiroŒs Report.
Back to Top of Document

Week 6

I chose to look for my topics in the ways that Dr. James had suggested until I had come across something that I was interested in. I first looked on Dr. James topical index file. This was where I had chosen my first two choices which were Dr. James' article on traffic psychology and a subheading under this paper. This subheading is called driving stories. My last one was chosen on the webcrawler under the topic of driving.

Traffic Psychology

The first item I chose to read over Dr. James article on traffic psychology. I located this on Dr. James' topical index. It was quite a lengthy article so I decided to focus on one section entitled procedures. It describes the two stages of Driving Persona Makeover. The first stage describes how to become a reformed driver. There is the affective level at which stage one must overcome resistance to change. The next level is cognitive level where one does a rational analysis of one's own driving incidents or experiences. The last level is the sensorimotor level where one gives the appearance of being a reformed driver.

The next stage describes becoming a facilitative driver. This stage also goes through the three levels of affective, cognitive and sensorimotor levels. The affective level involves maintaining loyalty to one's driving image and reputation; cognitive level involves reasoning like a traffic psychologist; and the sensorimotor level involves behaving like a happy reformed driver.

This is an excellent document on traffic psychology and I highly recommend it as a reading for those who are interested in changing their driving behavior to a more positive one. Other than that just read Dr. James' article on Traffic Psychology.

Driving Stories

In Dr. James' article that I had described above, there was a section on stories from different people of driving experiences that they had had. It is somewhat of a place where people just come and share their thoughts or feelings on driving or past experiences regarding driving that they have had.

I was quite surprised to read in this section some of what people had actually had done. One person had commented on how people needed to drive slower. If not, someone might actually get killed or something. This person (I agree with this particular view) would feel terribly remorseful if they had hurt, much less killed someone while speeding.

I personally am an aggressive driver, but I do believe in being a cautious driver. On occasion I will speed but most times I won't. My driving has changed dramatically in the area of speeding because while driving I have other people to think about other than myself. This is very important!!!! When you drive alone or with others you can affect another person's life even to the point of taking their life. (whether purposefully or not)

One person describes how they had hit someone although they were speeding. He/she was driving on campus when all of a sudden someone jumped out of nowhere. the person hit him, but not really hard because they had not been speeding in the first place. It was hard enough to make the man fall but he got right up and went on his way Go figure!!! But the point is always be watchful of your driving.

Another incident tells of a woman who was driving late one night when all of a sudden a pregnant woman came out of nowhere. Then one heard a thud as the driver hit the pregnant woman. It was not on purpose. the woman lived but her baby died. The pregnant woman was high on crack at the time she was hit but nonetheless, her baby had died. It took the driver three years to get over this incident. It was obviously very traumatic for her. It took her months to start driving again and to this day she won't drive at night. Remember you not only affect your life but that of others also.

What I also found in this article was some use of foul language. I do not use these kinds of words and I would appreciate it if others gave the courtesy of not saying it either. It really affects me to see swear words much less to hear the. So, please take into consideration that other people may not want to hear the filth that can come out of your mouth or your keyboard.

Guido's Aggressive Driving Page

This was not really an article about traffic although when I first saw the title I thought it was. It is merely a page where a man describes his car. I though it was quite interesting because this man, Guido, thinks that this awesome car of his makes him a lot of friends. If a car is the only way for a guy to make friends, oh boy, what a troubled world we live in. Guido actually sounds like a macho kind of a guy who thinks he's got it all. I don't know if he really is like that, but in my own opinion, that's what I think he seems like. He also has an e-mail address if anyone wants to e-mail him. He sounds rather intelligent. (he included a resume of his past experience, what an ego!) If you do please e-mail me and let me know what your findings are. Click here for my e-mail address.

I was looking around at other people's lab reports and I must say that I was very impressed with Terri Slaughter's report. Boy have you come a long way, girlfriend. Click here to see Terri's report on her week 6 assignment.

Week 11: Generational Curriculum Paper

The generational curriculum paper that I had read was entitled "Aggressiveness on the Road: Driver Behavior and Intervention Approaches." When I first read the paper I did not really think about its content. What I had thought about first and foremost was the fact that previous students of this Psychology 459 class instructed by Dr. James had to type out a twenty some odd page paper. What a relief that I did not have to but the amount of time and effort that has to go into maintaining an html account is quite a lot. I myself am taking 21 credits and was very behind for several weeks. It just took me having to make time and actually sitting down and doing the work. It was kind of difficult at first because I was having some problems with my computer at home and I had to come into the labs at school to work on my account. Aside from my 21 credits of school I work approximately 20-25 hours a week and I am actively involved with a Christian group on campus.(If any of you are interested we have a bible study every Wednesday evening, 7:30pm at Watanabe Room 114.) So I am very busy this semester but just an encouragement or more like a warning to you other students: DON"T EVER TAKE 21 CREDITS OF CLASSES UNLESS YOU HAVE THE TIME AND EFFORT TO DO GOOD AT IT AND HAVE GOOD GRADES. I normally am a pretty good student but I think this semester my I'll average a 3.0, not unless Dr. James has a little mercy?! (So what do you think Dr. James??) Well, enough of my sob story, some of you may have turned on the violins by now. Oh well, back to the generational curriculum paper.

I really enjoyed the paper that I had read. I was able to relate to much of what the author had mentioned about aggressive drivers. She first had a lengthy explanation of her library research efforts. I did not realize how difficult it was for college students to find various ways of looking up research information at the university level. It should be a basic requirement for college students, even high school students to have a basic knowledge of researching and writing papers. Much of it I believe is procrastination because the student dreads something that they did not know how to do. If the student was more knowledgeable and did not believe that the task was so great, things would get done faster. Sorry, about this other sidetrack of mine. Boy, can I babble on. I should write a book on just babbling.

MaryAnn, the author of the paper, looked up a definition of aggression. She came up with agression being any form of behavior performed with the intention or goal of physically or psychologically harming another living human being who is motivated to avoid harm. She went on the describe the Buss-shock method. This method involved the use of various materials presented to a subject to induce aggression. After which the subject is finally given the opportunity to respond and express this aggression.

Another contributor of aggression is Observational learning. MaryAnn described a famous study done by Bandura. Bandura observed that students copied behavior of models with a five-foot inflated Bobo doll. Other studies also showed that filmed violence initiates aggression. This means that watching movies with violent driving could initiate people to drive violently. Wow!!!! Violence in film and TV is so glamorized that many men probably find it macho to drive violently, well, not even violently, but aggressively.

I found it interesting that methods of catharsis and punishment have been used to try to control aggression. Please notice that I have used the term try to control. In order to use punishment, the punishment must be very severe, MaryAnn states. The punishment also must occur soon after the aggression. Catharsis was also shown to be ineffective.

I learned quite a bit from this paper. MaryAnn went on to explore the relationship between aggression and driving and components that would comprise a successful intervention program. There were several studies which showed that drivers with high extroversion scores were more likely to be involved in traffic accidents. Another study done in 1982 by Donovan and Marlatt showed that a subtyped group of DWI drivers exhibited aggressive driving tendencies such as aggression, competitive speed, sensation seeking, assaultiveness, irritability and indirect and verbal hostility.

One form of method of intervention treatment that MaryAnn thought would be effective was one that was a cognitive-behavioral, anger-management type. This subtyped group needed to learn how to deal with their levels of anger.

MaryAnn went on to study the various types of programs available at the time that she did her paper and found them to be inadequate. She also did an analysis of her driving behavior to see if she was an aggressive driver. She did find herself to be an aggressive driver much to her surprise and was able to change her driving personality even utilizing her husband's help. He did, however, take on a very critical attitude to her driving. (Anyone, who is going to aid in a driving makeover of a person, I recommend that you do not get too critical of a person's driving. You can be critical, but watch the undertone and the attitude with which you come across. Always remember that the person is seeking your help to improve himself/herself so always come to them with an attitude of love. If you remember this, the makeover should be an effective one!)

MaryAnn found that driver training programs and safety campaigns were lacking in their approach. No significant differences were found. The attitudes between the drivers of accident and non-accident groups were found to be similar. she noted that programs should be aimed at the target populations' peer-group and not at the drivers directly.

One comment that she made was that during a study some researchers found that some drivers use driving as a way of entering another dimension or another world. It is like a fantasy place where people can run away from the rigid structure of everyday life. Wow!! It sounds like some kind of science fiction movie, one of those futuristic Balde Runner types of movies. Well, for you younger folk it would be like a Mad Max kind of movie. Actually, even those kinds of movies are getting out of date.

Another side note of mine. I can't believe how fast time is going by. I am actually going to graduate next semester. Most of you are probably graduating this semester and you're probably younger than I am. One friend of mine stated that the older one gets the shorter time is. For example, if someone is 2 years old, than 1 year is half of that person's life. but, if someone is 20 years old than 1 year is 1/20th of that person's life. The span of 1 year in a person's life gets shorter and shorter. Imagine if someone is 90 years old. 1 year is 1/90th of that person's life. Time probably has zoomed by for that person. Don't get me wrong. I have a lot of respect for older people, in fact, I believe that they have experienced a lot and have a lot to offer and teach those who are part of the younger generation. Hey, you young ones, take the time to learn from those who have the privilege of being older and wiser because they may have the opportunity soon of leaving this world and going on to the next, whether it be better or worse depending on their life here. Only God really knows a person's heart and where they'll end up in the afterlife. I personally believe what God's Holy Word, the Bible.

Week 12

There were many observations that I did on tailgating. I noticed people have a tendency to do it when they are in a rush. But what I noticed more was that even when people tailgate, it does not get them to where they want to go any faster than if they decided to just wait patiently. I believe that tailgating just makes a person more impatient and irritable. This adds to more stress on the body causing physical implications.

Some people also tailgate because it is a subconscious reaction to their ego. If they feel someone in front of them is going too slow, they may feel like that person is in control of how fast they are going or just being in control in general. Much of our society today has a fixation on power and being in control. Maybe if this was lessened people would have an easier time and not tailgate.

Legality and Tailgating

Legally, tailgating is against the law. I believe that it is a law for a person to be at least one car length behind the person in front of them. If no one is in front of you, hey, no problem. But, if someone is in front of you, follow the law. The laws were put there for a reason. I do believe that our lawmakers don't just sit there and say, "Hey, I feel like passing this law today." As messed up as some of our government is sometimes, I do feel that they pass traffic laws for our benefit and not their own. So follow their laws you guys.

Morals and Tailgating

Tailgating is an outright disrespect for our moral laws. When a person chooses to tailgate, they are not taking into consideration the safety hazards this brings. What if someone were to accidentally brake or have to brake. The tailgater would be causing an accident if they were too close. The person behind the tailgater would also get affected, maybe, even injured. There are many other factors involved other than the tailgater wanting to get somewhere in a hurry. Safety before anything else. Come one people. We need to take care of each other and respect one another. If we don't start that, who will. Many times people will follow by example.

Spiritual Implications of Tailgating

When a person starts to tailgate, they take on a certain attitude. Their spirit changes from whatever it was before to a more aggressive and impatient one. The spiritual implications of all of this is that a tailgater takes on a different mindset. It is like Dr. James says of it being a sin. When a tailgater does this, they have no regard for their fellow man. The Bible says,"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." I would not like people tailgating me, therefore, I will not do that to others. I'm am almost positive that if you asked people, 10 out of 10 would say that they do not like to be tailgated either. We need to give the same respect to others as we would like them give to us.

Week 13

Generational Curriculum Paper: Overcoming Resistances to Proper Driving Procedures

I did not have an oral report like I did the last time. Because I had been gone for so long, I guess I will use an older report that Dr. James had given me to do a report on. This report is entitled Resistance to Proper Driving Procedures and Behavior Modification by one of Dr. James' previous Psychology 459 students. Because of the public access to the internet I may not be able to divulge her name.

Different Driving Styles

This paper discusses the student's research of proper driving practices and her modification of her own driving behavior. Her father was an aggressive driver which she believes to be an inheritable characteristic because she also has the same characteristic. Not being raised in Hawaii, she had to undergo a transition of environment from the west coast of the United States to Hawaii. There is a difference in driving style because recently I was in Los Angeles and I had noticed that I had reverted back to the same way of driving that I had before. Currently, I feel that I am a reasonably safe driver. I have more concern for my passengers' safety as well as for myself. When I had gone to Los Angeles, I reverted to the driving style that I previously had.

In my younger years (as if I am much older now), I owned a flashy red Corvette. The car had much power and I always put it to the test. It was never unused. I would speed everywhere I went. If any of you are familiar with Hawaii, here is an example of my previous speeding. Going from Kalihi to Ewa beach, it would only take me ten minutes. I consider this to be quite fast. Normally, it would take twice the amount of time, but more recently I have become accustomed to the style of driving that people have here in Hawaii. It is similar to the kind of transition that the student had gone through. She had been living in Hawaii for three years and still maintained that west coast style of driving. I guess when you don't really intend to change your driving habits you don't. I intentionally had changed my habits because I had more concern for others than I did before. I was very much selfish in my driving habits, trying to satisfy my own ego and personal desires.

Student's Objectives

The student's objective and goal was to become less aggressive and more accepting of others that share the road with her. She had hoped to do this by rechannelling her aggression into something more positive and in doing this she had hoped to be more accepting of others.

No control over other drivers

She had to come to the realization that she had no control over other drivers. The only way she could achieve her goals was to change her behavior. There were many things that needed to be changed. The key point to be changed was to change her way of thinking of driving. She admitted to possessing social perception. she had placed certain characteristics on drivers because of the physical appearcance of a car and observing how the driver reacts in a situation. She stereotyped people according to how they handled their cars and not according to sex, age, or race. These were her categories.

Categories of Drivers

1) those that have a death grip on the steering wheel

2) those that need booster cushions to see over the wheel , and still they can't see

3) those that like to be very close to the car in front of them

4) those that have their rear view mirrors cocked all the way down so that the only thing they could possibly see is the pavement on the road

She stereotypes these kind of drivers and upon seeing someone who is not driving to her liking, she will attribute categorize them inone of these categories. These are negative categories in her opinion.

Good driver or not?

She does claim that she is a good driver. She may be an aggressive driver but she also is a good driver which in her terminology means that she is responsible, obedient, conforming to traffic regulations and is courteous to other drivers.

Desirable Driving Behaviors

There is a book that she had referred to called The Effects of Driver Improvement School which states desirable attitudes to have when driving which are closely related to accident free driving:

1) Courtesy toward other motorists and pedestrians

2) Obeying traffic signals

3) Complying with all stop and warning signs

4) Patience in congested areas

5) Willingness to assist another motorist in need of assistance

6) Never attempting to pass in the presence of unsafe conditions

7) Adjusting to speed to climate conditions

8) Readiness to assume responsibility if involved in an accident

9) Keeping the automobile in safe condition

10) Not attempting to drive when fatigued or ill

11) Always having one's license available

12) Having liability insurance for the protection of the other driver and one's family

13) Always keeping to the right under normal driving conditions

14) Proper use of hand signals

15) Executing proper turns

16) Displaying a friendly attitude toward police officers

17) Never showing off, racing other motorists, or demonstrating supremacy

18) Depressing light beam when passing other vehicles at night

19) Maintaining a desirable attitude toward other passengers in the car

20) Signaling for other drivers to proceed or stop, depending on conditions

21) Giving complete attention to the skill of driving

Common Sense Rules

After having read these over, I feel that these are reasonable, common sense rules that people should follow. Sometimes it is easier to follow rules when they are written down. I do not know why this is so because these types of things should be written down if not etched in a person's mind.
Behavior Change

The student had tried to follow rules such as this as well as try to modify her thinking in order to change her driving behavior. She stated that initially it had given her some anxiety because she had to go through a transitional phase. This is analagous to someone who is coming off of a drug or alcohol addiction. They need to go through some type of withdrawal phase.

Successful Change

She was permanently successful in changing her driving behavior. Because of her ability to modify her driving behavior, it gives an example to others that it can be done. We do not have to live with our present driving behaviors if we do not choose to. She constantly monitors her driving and makes the necessary changes.

My Reaction to Paper

After having read her paper, it sounds like this student learned much. She was able to modify her behavior. This did not end at the end of her report. It seems to be a continual process where she continually evaluates her driving behavior. After reading this report I had learned that there are many other views and thoughts of driving that are different from mine. Our thoughts are as diverse as the people who think these thoughts. Although the people are different we can modify their approach to fit our personality or self.

Traffic Psychology or Not?

This most definitely fits into traffic psychology because if one person changes their thinking it affects traffic as a whole. I am a firm believer that people will tend to mimick what they see. If they see safe, cautious drivers they will want to be that way. Although people want to be thought of as unique individuals, they more often than not conform to society and its standards. So, if she has successfully changed her driving behavior, she can encourage others to do the same. She can also be an example to others without really ever saying anything.

Week 14

Week 15