Psychology 409a-
My Third Outline
of the Assigned
By Kalena Luney
Highway Rage
Leon James and Diane Nahl (2000).
Road Rage and Aggressive Driving: SteeringClear of Highway Warfare. (
Instructions for this activity are found at:
www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy23/409a-g23-oral.htm
Instructor: Dr. Leon James
I. Traffic Congestion
a.) commutes have become longer
due to increases in population throughout the
world. People who are unable to manage time get
frustrated in these situations because it causes them to be late.
b.) Since I’ve been driving,
it’s been clear to me how much traffic has increased.
In my small town, we used to joke about “rush minute”
because there were so few cars. Now we
have a clear rush hour.
c.) This is a situation that
people have to deal with around the world.
It’s
frustrating and highway commissions are
always developing new roadways and express lanes to help the flow of traffic
during these busy times.
II. Peer Pressure
a.) with a friend in the car, a person is more likely to drive fast, tailgate, or take
risks in order to show them they are not afraid. The need to feel accepted by peers makes people act far differently then they would if they were on their own.
b.) I have been in the car with friends and they will take risks that scare me but
that they laugh about. These are mostly young boys but I’m sure girls do similar things as well.
c.) Peer pressure is an on-going problem that will continue. However, if
awareness is promoted on safe driving, perhaps it will be phased out of the driving part of our lives.
III. Trigger Theory
a.) this is a theory that is described as people acting rudely out of feeling the need
show others how rude their actions are and this being a way to contribute to society.
b.) I will admit that I’ve done this. When someone has cut me off on the road,
the first thing I want to do is to tailgate them so that they know they were rude.
c.) I think this is one of the most important theories of driving behavior because it
is an instigator of road rage and promotes bad driving behavior that can be very dangerous.
Related Links:
www.fhwa.dot.gov/congestion/congpress.htm
www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/outreach/traftech/TT268/htm
www.honolulu/gov/hr/professionaldrivingattitude/pdf.
My Home Page: www.soc.hawaii.edu/leon/409af2005/luney/home.htm
Class Home Page: www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy23/classhome-g23.htm