My Sixth Outline

Three-Step Driver Self Improvement

This is a presentation of Road Rage and Aggressive Driving

By: Dr. Leon James & Dr. Diane Nahl, Prometheus Books, 2000; Pgs. 133 Š 150

By Kyle Santos

 

Instructions for this oral presentation are found at:

www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy22/g22-oral.htm

 

 

  1. Introduction
    1. Acknowledgment: acknowledging you need a better understanding of the road rage syndrome.
    2. Witness: Self witnessing your own aggressive acts and tendencies.
    3. Modify: Changing your driving personality around what you witnessed.

 

 

  1. Acknowledgement
    1. The first step to driving enlightenment is to acknowledge the issue. 

                                                     i.     You must understand that you donÕt fully understand Road Rage and its role in your life.

    1. Important to understand that you are not always in control of your emotions.
    2. We also become different people when we get behind the wheel.

                                                     i.     We stop being friendly and caring and become hostile and resentful.

    1. ItÕs impossible to change something without first coming to terms with its existence.
    2. Most problems are subconscious, so we arenÕt really aware they exist most of the time.

 

 

  1. Witnessing
    1. Next step, observing the acts and tendencies you have.
    2. Important to understanding what exactly needs to be changed.
    3. Can be large issues

                                                     i.     Speeding

                                                      ii.     Drinking and driving

                                                        iii.     Running red lights

                                                       iv.     Profane language aimed at other motorists

    1. Can also be small details

                                                     i.     Braking style (hard, last-minute braking, or soft, smooth breaking)

                                                      ii.     Breathing Š shallow or deep

                                                        iii.     Body tension

    1. Witnessing done through verbalizing thoughts and feelings

                                                     i.     Create a play-by-play depiction of whatÕs going on in your mind as you drive

    1. You can use tape recorders to record what youÕre doing while you drive.
    2. This is a very useful step.  IÕm sure we would all be completely shocked at what came out of your mouths while we drove.

 

 

  1. Modify
    1. The most obvious step is also a very difficult step
    2. Once we know what the problems are, we need to work to fix them.
    3. Different solutions exist for different problems, for different people.

                                                     i.     If you get angry because of traffic making you late, leave earlier.

                                                      ii.     If you find yourself speeding, consciously slow down and keep tabs of your current speed.

                                                        iii.     Avoid anger at other drivers by repeating calming phrases and ides to yourself when something bad happens.

    1. Modification requires detailed inventory of your style and habits.  You must be honest.  You must be constructive.

                                                     i.     Hyping yourself up will only exacerbate the problem.

 

 

  1. Conclusion
    1. This three step program is very intriguing and IÕm sure very helpful.  Self-witnessing would shed some light on many of our problems that result in extra stress and anxiety when driving.  Some people hate to drive and driving should be an enjoyable activity.  This program would certainly help one get to the root of that problem.

 

 

Helpful Links:

http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/499f97/suzuki/dra/file1.html

http://drdriving.org

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~ebdstudy/strategy/behave.htm

 

Homepage:

 

http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leon/409af2005/santos/home.htm