PSY 409 April 30, 2007

Impaired Driving

Jarret Ahn

 

Instructions for this activity are found at:

www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy26/g26-oral1.htm

Instructor: Dr. Leon James

 

Leon James and Diane Nahl (2000). Road Rage and Aggressive Driving: Lifelong Driver Education. (Amherst, N.Y.: Prometheus Books).

 

Peter Rothe (1999). Driving Lessons: Exploring Systems That Make Traffic Safer.  (Alberta, Canada: The University of Alberta Press).

 

Articles 19:  Article 19 is titled “Aggressive Driving is Emotionally Impaired Driving.”  The link to this article is:  http://www.aggressive.drivers.com/board/messages/25/47.html

 

 

James, Leon.  (2007). Lecture Notes on Driving Psychology for G26. Online at: www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy26/409a-g26-lecture-notes.htm

 

 

  1. Impairments and Aggressive Driving

a)  There are so many variables, factors and causes of aggressive driving whether it is internal or external implications

1.  Mind and body altering substances

1.  Alchohol

2.  Medication i.e. antidepressants, sleep pills, excessive pain relievers, Viagra

3.  Illegal drugs i.e. marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy, ect.

2.  Lack of rest or sleep

1.  Lack of rest can cause people to be extremely irritable and predisposed to anger

2.  Lack of sleep can seriously hinder reaction time, bodily control, consciousness, vision, hearing and mental capacities

3.  Driving angry or enraged

1.  Drivers who are angry are more likely to drive recklessly

2.  Angry drivers vent through their vehicle

3.  Vehicle can easily be turned into a killing machine

4.  Angry drivers make other drivers angry

4.  Stress

1.  Drivers stressed from work or school are often inattentive because they are worrying about something else

2.  They may also be stressed because they are late or lost and this can be very hazardous as well

3.  Stress often leads to anger and frustration

5.  Distractions

1.  Multitasking can be very dangerous if driver is not proficient

2.  Cell phones can not only distract mentally but often takes away one of the driver’s operable hands

3.  Talking to passengers can become hazardous if driver becomes overly involved or excited by conversation

4.  Paying too much attention to the landscapes, other drivers or things outside the car can be dangerous

  1. Impairment and influences

a)  Driving with the above impairments is often condoned by friends and family

1.  Parents often drive while on the phone or yelling at their kids which is very hazardous

2.  Movies, television and the media often influence drivers to drive recklessly

3.  If they do not influence they desensitize drivers making them less inclined to change or improve bad driving habits

b)  Video games

a.  Kids often feel the need to copy racing games or emulate grand theft auto kind of actions

b.  At the very least video games plant bad ideas and gives kids reason and motive to act upon them

c.  Also drive kids to desire and want faster cars or to build and better their current cars which costs them money and stress

 

 

Related Links

 

Driver Safety

Another great site that shows the implications of driving while on the phone. This site discusses if cell phones impair driving and explains that out of the 117 million cell phone users in the U.S. drivers spend roughly 60% of their time on the road on the phone.

 

Cell Phones and Driving

A very interesting article on cell phone usage. It has extensive studies and statistics to show that cell phones are not the most hazardous distraction on the road. This site also explains the history of cell phones.

 

 

Creating Better Driving Habits A very brief but concise website with a few very informative tips on ways to be a safer driver. Sometimes fewer words can have a much bigger impact than thesis’s or large articles. This is one of those.

 

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