G29 Generation,
Spring 2009, Psychology 409a
Hello! As a student, I never would have
thought that I would have taken a psychology class on driving. I never even knew that a course like
this existed, but I am glad that I took the opportunity to take it. As the course comes to an end, I found
that driving is not just a means of getting from one place to another. Driving is a complex action that
involves your bodily actions, thoughts, and emotions. I cannot imagine how we drive so often without really
concentrating on the actual process of driving.
This
report is a reflection of the knowledge that I have gained on driving
psychology throughout the semester.
I learned many concepts, such as road rage, aggressive driving, and hypermiling,
and even got a chance to reform my own driving skills. Please enjoy discovering an up and
coming realm in psychology, driving psychology.
1. Interviewer: Hello Mrs. Waldorf. ItÕs nice to finally meet you. So what inspired you to look into the
subject of driving psychology?
2. Author: As a mother of 3, I frequently drive back
and forth in traffic, I found myself constantly asking myself tons of questions. For example, what can we do to help
traffic to flow better? Why does
the other lane always seem faster than the one IÕm in? Why are other people are
such aggressive drivers on the road?
Driving psychology is used to decrease the number of accidents,
influence driverÕs attitudes, and improve their driving skills.
3. Interviewer: I see, so the many questions running
through your head got you started, but what really got you hooked on this
subject?
4. Author: The think that the issue that really drew
me in to driving psychology was how unsafe the roads are because of the nature
of certain drivers. They are
aggressive and irresponsible at times, which puts other people in danger.
5. Interviewer: So thatÕs why you wrote your book, Understanding
Driving: The Bumpy Road Ahead.
How would you describe this aggressive driving that is making the roads
unsafe?
6. Author: Aggressive driving consists of reckless
behavior that puts other people in danger because aggressive drivers blame
others and feel that they are in the way.
These drivers impose an increased risk on them.
7. Interviewer: What are the typical characteristics of
these aggressive drivers?
8. Author: Aggressive drivers constantly put the
blame on others for their own actions.
They get annoyed when other people are in their way. Majority of people do not feel that
this type of driving is aggressive or hostile. They feel like it is just competitive. The individuals that
perform this type of driving feel vindicated by acting in this manner. When aggressive drivers feel
aggravated, they usually take it out on someone else by cutting other cars off
or preventing a car from passing them.
9. Interviewer:
What are some specific behaviors that aggressive drivers possess?
10. Author: These
behaviors may include swearing, breaking the speed limit (over 15 mph),
changing lanes without signaling, running red lights, tailgating, cruising in
the passing lane, and making offensive gestures.
11. Interviewer:
So if these behaviors are aggressive driving, then is there a means of
measuring aggressive driving?
12. Author:
There is much indistinctness when it comes to measuring aggressive
driving. There are both indirect
and direct ways to measure this driving type. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but they are
the only means to a glimpse into measuring aggressive driving.
13. Interviewer:
Can you elaborate on the indirect and direct forms of measurement?
14. Author: The
indirect form of measuring aggressive driving comes from the self-report from
drivers. The drivers fill out
checklists to whether they feel that these statements apply to themselves. An example statement may be, when
another driver cuts in front of me and I need to brake, then I feel like
crashing into them, so they learn their lesson next time.
The
direct form of measuring aggressive driving deals with the observable behaviors
that can potentially get a driver a ticket. The amount of behaviors that lead to a ticket may differ
from state to state. For example,
in the state of Washington, the driver must perform two or more offenses, such
as breaking the speed limit, making unsafe U-turns, or running traffic signs or
lights. These offenses must occur
within five miles one after the other.
15. Interviewer:
Are there advantages and disadvantages to these forms of measuring
aggressive driving?
16. Author: Each
form gives us a glimpse into a different arena about the aggressive driving,
which is an advantage. The
disadvantage of the indirect measurement deals with the self-reports. The accuracy of these self-reports is
unable to be determined because drivers are biased and have varying perceptions
of themselves and others at all times.
The disadvantage of the direct measurement is that there is always a way
around tickets for aggressive driving because a driver could state that there
is no way that the police could have seen them commit these offenses due to the
fact that there was a car in between them.
17. Interviewer:
So there are drivers acting in an unjust manner. What causes them to act so aggressively
while driving?
18. Author: There
are socioenvironemental factors, like traffic, deficient highway engineering,
and the sense of power that drivers feel, which influence aggressive
driving. There is also the mental
illness factor that includes anger disorders that arise while driving. Finally there are cultural habit
factors, such as imperfect attitudes and inadequate driving skills, which
contribute to aggressive driving as well.
19. Interviewer:
The factors that you have stated are pretty much inevitable. Is this the only reason why the issue
of aggressive driving a significant one?
20. Author:
Aggressive drivers murder two to four times more people than drunk
drivers do. This statistic shows
how dangerous aggressive driving can be.
The amount of people who drive aggressively is also increasing all over
the world. Therefore we need to
reevaluate the approaches that we are taking while driving.
21. Interviewer: In
that case, would you say that drunk driving is aggressive?
22. Author:
Drunk driving is aggressive because others are being put at risk and are
getting hurt or even worse dying.
People are at risk because the drunk drivers are impaired physically due
to the alcohol consumption. This
type of behavior is antisocial because of the risk factors involved. Drunk drivers think that they are okay
to drive and are not thinking about the consequences for themselves or others.
23. Interviewer:
That is an unfortunate situation, but letÕs move on to another related
topic. How would you define the
term road rage?
24. Author:
Road rage is a word that has multiple definitions, but a single one is
not established. It is routine
aggressive driving as a permanent way of acting while driving. It may be words and gestures or assault
and battery. Two indicators of road rage include the desire to get revenge and
penalize as well as mental violence that goes along with rage.
25. Interviewer:
Is there only one type of road rage or are there multiple types?
26. Author:
There are multiple types of road rage. There is passive-aggressive road rage, verbal road rage,
epic road rage, automotive vigilante, rushing maniac, aggressive competitor,
and a scofflaw. Each type of road
rage is different in the extreme actions that may be taken or emotions that may
be felt.
27. Interviewer: Wow,
it is truly shocking to think that there are that many types. What is passive-aggressive road rage?
28. Author: Passive-aggressive
road rage occurs when people ignore other drivers or just act inappropriately
towards them. These are the
drivers who seem oblivious to the environment around them. This can be dangerous because drivers
never know how other people are going to respond in annoyance to their own
behavior. An example of a driver
with this type of road rage is the left-lane bandit. These drivers drive slower than the usual speed in the left
lane, which causes other drivers to wait behind them or pass them on the right
hand side.
29. Interviewer: So is
verbal road rage just what it seems to be, like yelling?
30. Author:
Actually, verbal road rage consists of both verbal and non-verbal means
of complaining about the traffic, pedestrians, signs, law enforcement, and road
workers around us. This type of
road rage is the most common type and is a habit that most people do not even
realize it. Verbal road rage also
consists of gestures and honking to show the irritation of the driver. A driver with verbal road rage would
say something like, what are you doing moron, get out of my way!
31. Interviewer: What
sets epic road rage a part from the other types of road rage that we mentioned
earlier?
32. Author: Epic
road rage involves fantasizing roles of comic book characters to retaliate
against other drivers. This
involves chasing, dragging, shooting, and killing the other driver. In many situations, verbal road rage
leads to epic road rage. There are
some individuals who feel like they are in a race and every other car is the
bad guy, therefore these people drive dangerously and highly risky to Òwin the
race.Ó
33. Interviewer:
What are automotive vigilante and what traits to they possess?
34. Author: Automotive
vigilante uses verbal abuse, inappropriate gestures, and dangerous driving
maneuvers constantly. They may
target individuals at random or choose them for a specific reason. These drivers feel superior to everyone
else and see themselves at the judge, jury, and executioner.
35. Interviewer: Is a
rushing maniac exactly what it sounds like?
36. Author:
These drivers will do anything to stay away from slowing down or
stopping. Therefore anyone or
anything that gets in their way will make them upset. Rushing maniacs often cut in and out of various lanes
because they are trying to figure out which lane is the quickest. They want to get to their destination
in the shortest amount of time.
37. Interviewer:
What is an aggressive competitor?
38. Author:
An aggressive competitor needs to always be in the lead and does not
like when another car passes him or her.
These drivers enjoy mocking other drivers when they make mistakes, but
feel embarrassed when they are the ones making the error. One situation where you may have felt
these same emotions is when you are in a parking lot. You feel disappointed when you miss a parking stall, but you
feel superior when you find one before everyone else does.
39. Interviewer: Wow, I
never thought about it that way.
Maybe I am an aggressive competitor too. Can you explain the final type of road rage, the
scofflaw?
40. Author:
A driver who is a scofflaw is an individual who rebels against the
laws. These people think that they
are above the law. This type of
driver is very suspicious of the people who create the road regulations along
with the people who enforce these laws.
41. Interviewer: Who
knew that there is such an array of road rage types? Road rage and aggressive driving seem to be related from
what you stated previously. How
would you determine the difference between road rage and aggressive driving?
42. Author: Officially
there is no way to differentiate between these two terms because the government
does not have an agreed upon definition for either terms. In some states, law enforcement has
laws in regards to road rage or aggressive driving. Road rage stems from aggressive driving. The difference between the two is that
road rage includes when we feel the need to let the other driver know that we
are unhappy and upset because of their actions. By doing this, we hope that the other driver will feel
guilty about what they did to us.
43. Interviewer: LetÕs
switch to another subject. You
mention a merging debate in your book.
Could you expand on what this debate consists of?
44. Author:
The merging debate deals with the time when cars should merge when a
lane is ending. A situation where
this comes about is when there is roadwork in one lane, so the traffic from the
lane that is ending needs to merge into another lane that is remaining
open. There are two groups in the
debate, the early mergers and the late mergers.
45. Interviewer: So
what would these groups do in the situation that you mentioned with the
roadwork?
46. Author:
The early merger would change lanes as soon as they saw that the lane
was ending, while the late merger would change lanes at the last chance, when
the lane they were in was closed already.
47. Interviewer:
What validates or invalidates the early merge and the late merge?
48. Author: The
early merge is beneficial because you do not need to worry about not being able
to get over into the next lane.
You know that the lane that you are merging into will not end suddenly. The early merge is not helpful because
of the fact that most of the time these drivers will see other drivers speeding
past you because the lane that you have merged into is now slowing down. This makes most people livid because
the drivers that are moving are in the lane that you were in previously.
The late merge is beneficial because you are making use of
both lanes until the very end, when one lane ends. It does not make sense to leave the lane that is ending
empty because it is not using the space efficiently. The problem with late merging is that people who do merge
early often get upset at these late mergers for waiting until the last
minute. Therefore other drivers
may not give late mergers space to merge.
49. Interviewer: If you
needed to, which side would you choose, the early mergers or the late mergers?
50. Author: I
would not say that I am on any particular side because both sides have a valid
reason for merging at the time that they merge. This makes choosing a side more difficult. Theoretically, the late merge should be
best because you are utilizing a maximal amount of lanes therefore the traffic
should flow quicker. This would
assume that all of the late mergers could easily merge into the lane that is
not closed. However, this is not
always the case in reality.
Drivers can be stubborn and selfish, so they may not let late mergers
in. This causes even more
congestion.
51. Interviewer:
So when a driver chooses to merge is pretty much a personal choice then?
52. Author: This
is not always the case. Computer
simulations have shown that late merging allowed a significant number of
vehicles through when the lanes were merging from three lanes to one lane. When the lanes merged from three to two
lanes or two lanes to one, the late merge only allowed more vehicles through
when the percentage of heavy vehicles was large.
53. Interviewer:
I see. In certain
instances, the situation pretty much makes the decision for you. LetÕs move one to another important
subject. How would you define
speeding?
54. Author:
The definition of speeding may be different depending on who you are
asking and what situation they are referring to. Police believe that any speed above the posted speed limit
sign is speeding. A majority of
drivers believe otherwise.
Majority of people drive over the speed limit by a specific factor, but
that factor may differ depending on the neighborhood. For example drivers may believe that speeding is 15 miles
over the speed limit. This means
in an area that has a speed limit of 35 miles per hour, most drivers would not
be speeding unless they are going 50 miles per hour.
55. Interviewer: In
your opinion, why do you feel we need speed limits?
56. Author: We
need speed limits because drivers need a speed that is predictable. Without a set speed, there is an
increased amount of risk involved when driving. This also encourages road rage. Speed limits are necessary because they allow drivers to
determine their decisions on the road and respond accordingly.
57. Interviewer: Okay,
so speed limits are necessary, but do you think that the speed limits are set
too low?
58. Author:
When speed limits are set too low, drivers will drive higher than the
limits because of the confidence that they have in themselves. This may imply that the speed limits
may be too low because of the amount of drivers who are speeding. Not only do drivers drive faster when
the speed limit is too low, but it also creates a more dangerous driving
environment by encouraging a range of speeds.
59. Interviewer: If you
say that the speed limits are too low, then how should the speed limits be set?
60. Author: Speed
limits should be based on the actual rate that people drive on that particular
stretch of road. This allows for
the safest driving. Many traffic
engineers also agree with that statement.
When speed limits are set appropriately, there will be less people
getting stopped for traffic citations, like speeding tickets.
61. Interviewer:
HmmmÉthat actually sounds feasible. Moving on to gender issues. Do men and women have the same driving behaviors?
62. Author:
Actually men and women have some similarities in some driving behaviors
and differ at other times. The
similarities or differences between men and women depend on the type of
situation and behavior involved.
63. Interviewer:
Can you give me some examples of behaviors where men and women differ?
64. Author: Men
and women differ in the amount of risk that they are willing to take. Overall, men take bigger risks than
women do. For example, men are
more likely to drive 25 miles per hour over the speed limit than women
are. There are more men who
participate in dangerous activities, such as driving while intoxicated. Men and women also differ in the
emotions that they experience while driving. Men report experiencing more negative emotions, such as
impatience and violence. On the
other hand, women report experiencing more positive emotions behind the wheel.
65. Interviewer:
Where do you believe that these differences stem from?
66. Author: These
differences may stem from biological differences in the amount of testosterone
men and women possess. Men have
significantly more testosterone, which contributes to men being bigger risk
takers. Another explanation may be
an evolutionary one as men were hunters and women were caregivers, this may
account for better visual spatial ability in men, which is an important one for
driving. Socialization may also be
a factor that contributes to these differences.
67. Interviewer: Who
would you say are the better drivers, men or women?
68. Author:
Of course the women are better drivers. Statistics show that men get into four times as many
accidents than women in the same age group. Younger men also have higher insurance rates than those of
young females, but this gap is closing due to the increasing aggressiveness of
females. Finally, men get more
traffic citations than women do.
69. Interviewer:
I have a question on a different subject. I have heard about hypermiling, but what is the debate going
on with this subject?
70. Author: Hypermiling
is a style of driving in which people tend to accelerate minimally and tend to
coast often. They also keep their
tires inflated to the right pressure and drive with the windows up and the air
conditioner off. The controversy
with hypermilers is that other people think that they are a burden to traffic
and are just plain rude.
71. Interviewer:
So why do people practice this driving trend when other people
disapprove?
72. Author:
People participate in hypermiling to save money by getting the best gas
mileage they can. They also want
to protect the environment and be less dependent on oil. Some individuals do it just for pure
enjoyment.
73. Interviewer: Are
there any other disadvantages of hypermiling besides people disliking the
practice?
74. Author: There
are dangers involved when drivers go to extremes to practice hypermiling. Some drivers use momentum to go up a
hill, which leaves the car going pretty slowly near the top. This endangers the driver as well as
the other drivers behind this hypermiler.
Another dangerous practice is drafting, which means driving behind
another vehicle because of decreased wind resistance. This involves driving 50 feet behind a big rig, which could
put a driver into the hospital.
75. Interviewer: LetÕs
shift to another potentially dangerous practice, cell phone use. What is your position on their use while
driving?
76. Author:
I think that hand held cell phones are not as safe as using speakerphone
or hands free headsets.
Speakerphone and headsets allow a driver to hold a conversation as if
the person was in the car with them, which means both hands are free to be on
the wheel. People need to be able
to communicate with others, even when they are driving.
77. Interviewer:
So you donÕt think that legislators should ban cell phone use while
driving?
78. Author: I
think that this type of legislation would be difficult to enforce because of
the fact that there are so many cell phone users. Cell phone use while driving has become a part of everyoneÕs
daily life. Therefore, the ban of
cell phones would not be practical.
79. Interviewer:
But cell phone use while driving is dangerous, so what do you think is a
better solution to the problem?
80. Author:
A better solution would be to train people how to use your cell phone
while driving. Some key concepts
that people should learn are how to stay alert as well as appearing to be
alert. Responding appropriately to
changes in traffic can carry these ideas out.
81. Interviewer:
That sounds like it would take a lot of work. It also seems like it would go with another topic that
youÕve mentioned in your book, lifelong driver education. What does this entail?
82. Author:
Lifelong driver education involves instilling concepts that deal with
driving and a personÕs personality from kindergarten to 12th grade
and beyond. It begins with the
affective skills, like feelings and emotions, in elementary school. Next it moves to middle school, where
children learn about cognitive skills, such as analyzing driving incidents and
acknowledging other passengers and pedestrians rights. In high school, adolescents learn
sensorimotor skills by practicing coordination skills with a simulator as well
as being prepared for aggressive drivers.
After receiving a license, drivers need to continue their education with
Quality Driving Circles (QDCs).
83. Interviewer: What
is a QDC?
84. Author: QDCs
are groups of about two to ten drivers who come together voluntarily on a
regular basis to improve their driving using a self-improvement program. They talk about driving and automotive
information, learn to do self-witnessing procedures, as well as understanding
cultural road rage and the means by which it is taught to future
generations. Individuals that are
a part of QDCs attempt to shift drivers to become more supportive of one
another while on the road.
85. Interviewer: It
seems like that would really help change the way people drive. Why do you think we do not have
something like this today?
86. Author:
I think that people are comfortable driving the way that they do. Therefore, they probably would not be
open to a program such as this.
People donÕt realize that they can change their driving habits and drive
from a totally new perspective.
This perspective could lead to a more pleasant environment on the road
for everyone. Eventually something
of this sort would be implemented to benefit the driving experience worldwide.
87. Interviewer: That is very insightful. I hope that you continue to work to making the roads a
better place. Thank you so much
for your time Mrs. Waldorf.
88. Author: No,
thank you. I enjoyed discussing
these important driving issues with you.
Driving is a part
of everyday life. Most people
cannot even remember a day when they did not drive at one point or another
during the day. For this reason,
driving becomes more of a chore.
People donÕt think about driving when they drive. All they think about is getting from
one place to the next. This cycle
continues until one day something unexpected occurs, an accident. Most people feel uneasy about driving again,
but then they slowly get back into their regular groove.
Drivers get
comfortable with the way that they drive and overestimate how well they do
it. If people care about their
family members, they should speak up and suggest some form of a driving personality
makeover, especially when it makes the passengers feel uncomfortable. This makeover will not only benefit the
driver, but it will also benefit the rest of the driverÕs family and friends
because a more aware, positive driver should get into less accidents. We can learn from other peopleÕs
mistakes, only if people can admit to them.
Prior
Research: Assessment of Previous Generational Student Reports
One
generational report that I looked at was by Jocelyn
Manibusan from Generation 11.
This report went over the definition of a driving personality makeover,
some psychological concepts, as well as an experiment for
self-modification. It seems that
this report is valid because these concepts are ones that we, as students,
still hear about today. The report
was useful because it had a recommendation to future generations, which I could
relate to. I found that the report
was average and could have had a more explanation and details in the driving
personality makeover section as well as the self-modification portion. I think she could have proofread her
work more carefully and been more consistent with the color of the text.
The
second generational report that I read was from Generation 10Õs Farah
Yonamine. This report also
covered a driving personality makeover definition, the definition of a driving
buddy, and the authorÕs personal experience as a driving buddy. Farah did a good job of sharing her
detailed personal experiences with driving and being a driving buddy. I feel that this report would be useful
to people who also do not have their driverÕs license because they could relate
to her feelings. It was
interesting to see how casual she was throughout the entire report. One thing that she could have done was
to put more detail into the concepts, like personality makeover.
Desmond
Salima of Generation 7 composed the final generational report that I
viewed. His report deals with the
impact of television on driving behavior.
Desmond looked at various programs and rated them. Next he went on to discuss how watching
these shows affected him and explain what we can do about the media
influences. The subject was
interesting because television is fairly universal and everyone has watched
driving scenes in cartoons, movies, and television shows. This report seemed unrepresentative
because Desmond was the only one who rated and evaluated the various
shows. Therefore I do not think
that this report was useful to support or refute any ideas about the influence
of television on driving behavior.
I think that he could have used a better system to analyze the influence
of the shows on himself as well as make the sample more representative of a
greater population.
My Makeover
Attempt: One Step at a Time
I
got my driverÕs license two years ago, which is kind of late, considering I got
my permit when I was about 16 years old.
I was always too busy to actually take the time to practice driving, so
it took me a while to gain the confidence to finally take the road test. At 21 years old, I still feel like I
have a lot to learn when it comes to driving. Sometimes I feel like I drive like an old lady and other
times I can be a rushing maniac. I
guess it just depends on the situation that I am in.
Therefore,
I designed a makeover plan for myself.
This consists of following three steps: acknowledge, witness, and
modify. Acknowledging my unsafe
driving practices and unhealthy thoughts is the first step because it makes me
realize that I need to change the way that I drive and how I think and feel
about driving. Next, I need to
witness the problem areas by being aware of what I am doing and thinking while
driving, as well as paying attention to my external environment. Finally, I need to modify my driving
personality and behaviors. This
plan can be executed with the makeover of the threefold self.
The threefold
self is a representation of a personÕs personality. It consists of the affective, cognitive, and sensorimotor
portions. These aspects of self
come together to determine driving behavior, which means that we need to
concentrate on each area equally.
Each component constantly has an effect on the other two. The idea of the threefold self goes
along with the idea lifelong driver education, which involves constant learning
from elementary school to high school and beyond. There are specific curricula that go along with each part of
the threefold self, such as instructional activities. Learning to be aware of the threefold self is the key to
being a proficient driver.
The first part of
the threefold self is the affective self.
This aspect includes a personÕs feelings, needs, emotions, attitudes,
and values. The affective self
also includes anything else that deals with guiding a personÕs actions. Drivers encounter affective driving
errors when they experience a disagreement between their personal motives. An example of when this error may occur
is when driver is running late, so they speed. In this case, the disagreement is between wanting to follow
the law as well as wanting to be on time.
Attempting to avoid these types of errors is an important driving skill
to acquire.
The cognitive
area is the next part of the threefold self. This portion consists of thoughts and reasoning. Anything that deals with comprehending
other peopleÕs actions as well as dealing with decision-making is related to
cognitive self. These ideals play
an important role when learning to make accurate judgments when dealing with
everyday driving routines. People
sometimes make erroneous decisions when they interpret events incorrectly. This commonly occurs when people assume
that there is no one behind them, so they do not signal when changing lanes,
which may lead to an accident.
Here the person failed to think about other possibilities, such as
someone being in their blind spot.
The final
component of the threefold self is the sensorimotor one. This realm relates to a driverÕs clear
actions and consists of experiences that deal with both sensory and motor
routes. The sensorimotor component
of the threefold self is commonly used while changing lanes. The driver needs to signal, turn his or
her head to make sure that there are no cars in the lane, as well as be
prepared to brake in case it is needed.
This means that the other two components, affective and cognitive
selves, have some bearing on the actions that are made while driving.
For my makeover,
I decided to work on a few things from each part of the threefold self. For the affective portion, I chose to
learn to tolerate those individuals who make mistakes, act in a positive manner
towards others, and to follow the laws to reduce my fear of cops. I wanted to work on thinking good
thoughts about other drivers, supporting other drivers, and leaving early. These examples deal with my cognitive
area of the threefold self. Finally I decided to increase my following distance, decrease
my multitasking, and increase my attention span as sensorimotor makeovers.
The affective
makeover began with realizing that I do not possess the right emotions or
values while I drive. I found that
I donÕt always value other motorists or pedestrians enough. Sometimes I speed or forget to signal
while changing lanes, so when I see a police officer, I get nervous about
getting pulled over. To do this
makeover, I chose to try to improve on these areas on my drive home from school
one day.
One Thursday I
finished class at 11:45 am and decided to make my way home alone. I left the parking structure at UH a
little before 12 Noon and I got home at about 12:15 pm. Therefore the entire trip was about 15
minutes long. The route began as I
drove down Dole Street and turned on to Waialae Avenue to get on to the H-1
freeway, where I took the Likelike Highway exit to go home.
Because the drive
was during the middle of a weekday, there was a descent amount of cars on the
road, but no traffic. The freeway
was flowing and I did not have to come to a complete stop at any point in time. I also did not encounter any police
officers during my trip.
While I was
driving, I constantly had to remind myself remember to use my blinker, make a
complete stop at stop signs, and prevent myself from going through red
lights. Driving within the speed
limit range was the difficult thing for me. On the freeway, the speed limit changed from 45 miles per
hour near UH and went up to 50 miles per hour as I drove through town. I kept looking at the speedometer to
check how fast I was going, but unfortunately I was always going about five
miles over the speed limit. I was
not even keeping up with the rest of the traffic because there were at least
three cars that passed me while I drove in the second lane from the left. This meant that the cars around me were
driving closer to ten miles over the speed limit. I had to try to do everything that would prevent me from
feeling nervous about getting a ticket.
Luckily, I have yet to receive my first moving violation.
As for feeling
more tolerant about other competitive motorists, and feeling, I also had to
remind myself to practice these positive feelings and not let competitive
drivers bother me. When drivers
were cutting in front of me and speeding ahead, I had to rationalize by
thinking that they probably have somewhere they need to go, so it is okay and I
forgive them for treating me inappropriately. Another way of thinking about the driver just had an error
of judgment, but that is also okay because no one is perfect.
I also remembered
to practice positive feelings toward other drivers by thanking them, when they
allow me to cut over into their lane.
While driving near UH, there was a significant amount of pedestrians,
who were crossing the street.
Therefore I waited until they were across the street before making right
hand turns. This allowed me to
practice positive intentions by giving them the space to walk safely. In the future, I hope to strengthen
these attempts by remembering to think positively about others and forgive them
as well as decreasing my anxieties about getting a ticket by abiding all
traffic laws.
To start my
cognitive makeover, I acknowledged that the thoughts running through my head
while I am driving are not always the most positive ones, especially when I am
in rush hour traffic. Usually I
end up calling people names, like idiot, rushing, and trying to get through
traffic quicker than everyone else.
Therefore I chose to self-witness by doing a makeover during the weekly
drive that I make alone from my house in Alewa Heights to my dance class in
Waipahu.
On a different
Thursday, my journey began at about 4:30 pm because my dance class starts at
6:00 pm. I remembered to leave
early, which allowed me to eliminate the need to rush. The drive took me about 45 minutes,
which is an average amount of time during the week. I got on to the H-1 freeway and continued to drive through
Moanalua Freeway and finally got back on the H-1 freeway to get to my
destination in Waipahu.
During the drive,
the traffic was pretty slow moving, but thankfully there were no
accidents. During the afternoon,
the drive usually feels worse because of the heat. Because I knew I needed to have my head in the right state
of mind, I made sure that I had a decent amount of gas, so I could use the air
conditioner. Using the air
conditioner allowed my body to stay cool, which in turn allowed me to feel less
irritated about being in traffic.
While I was
driving in traffic, I tried to tell myself to calm down and enjoy the time that
I had to myself to just relax and listen to the radio. Because I left early, I did not really
have to keep looking at the time or try to figure out the lane that was moving
the fastest. My mind was in a
relatively stress-free zone. When
drivers did cut in front of me, I thought to myself, ÒThese people are just all
trying to get where they need to go.
Everyone is in the same boat.Ó
This contributed to thinking good thoughts about other drivers and
thinking of showing my support and cooperation for them.
During my planned
attempt, I felt that I had to keep reminding myself that I was doing my
cognitive makeover, which meant I needed to keep a positive outlook on my
external situation, the traffic, and the other drivers. I tried to concentrate on listening to
music on the radio, which takes my mind off of the fact that I was slowly
moving. Making myself feel calm
was the key to my success, but I could have just been in a good mood that day
as well. Everyone has his or her
good and bad days. Because of
this, I did not think about how annoying it can be when people constantly cut
in and out of traffic or how close the car behind me was. Everything that I did during this drive
contributes to the modification of my driving personality. In the future, I
think that I need to practice being in the correct, more positive, state of
mind for me to think less aggressively.
I began my
sensorimotor makeover by acknowledging that I do not always give driving the
right amount of attention that it requires. I usually make short phone calls while I am driving and
sometimes I text message as well.
I also find my self constantly changing the radio station, when a song
comes on that I do not like. This
usually leads to me stopping close to the car in the front of me. These are the things that I decided to
self-witness during my makeover attempt.
I chose to do my
makeover attempt during my solo drive from UH Manoa to pick up my mom from work
at Ala Moana. Prior to leaving
school, I knew that I was going to do my makeover, so I made my calls as I
walked to the car. I also made
sure that the radio was on a station that I liked before pulling out of the
parking stall. From start to end,
the drive took me about 20 minutes.
I drove down University Avenue and turned on to Kapiolani Street until I
got to Ala Moana. I took my trip
during the early afternoon, so there was not much traffic.
While I was
driving, I heard the text message alert from my cell phone. I purposely left my phone in my bag, so
I would have less of an urge to look at it. Typically I drive with my phone on my lap, so I do not have
to bother looking through my bag to get it. Next there was a song on the radio that I do not like at
all. At that point, I lifted my
hand to change the station, but I put it back down because I remembered that I
was not supposed to play with any gadgets.
For the remainder
of the trip, I tried to concentrate on the road and forget about the radio and
the new text message that I received.
This allowed me to pay attention to my driving. Because I was not distracted by the use
of my phone, I could maintain a safe following distance on the road and at
stoplights. I think that I was
partially successful because during part of my drive I did get to concentrate
just on the driving. I kept
telling my self to leave the phone alone, donÕt touch the radio, and
concentrate on driving. I also
kept thinking that I was almost at my momÕs office. In the future, I could strengthen this attempt by putting my
phone on silent, so I donÕt know when IÕm getting calls, and putting a CD in
that I like, so I donÕt need to worry about songs that I donÕt like.
I recommend that
driving personality makeovers should be used on everyone. No one is a perfect driver because
everyone is human. Driving with a
better personality allows driving to be more pleasurable as well as safer. Unfortunately, the idea that everyone
can participate in a makeover is being idealistic. People have to be open to change for the makeover to take
its turn. There is going to be a
large majority of people who are resistant to change and do not feel that there
is anything wrong with their feelings, thoughts, and actions when driving. These are the people who would not be
good candidates for these makeovers.
Realistically,
the people who should do driving personality makeovers are those individuals
who are open to change and are willing to accept that altering their frame of
mind while driving can lead to a much more pleasant relaxing experience while
on the road. Individuals who
choose to participate should realize that this change does not happen over
night, it takes dedication and hard work.
Drivers also should be able to accept and give constructive criticism to
get the greatest benefit from the program.
The people who
should be taught to do the driving personality makeovers should be enthusiastic
about promoting a relaxed, more supportive driving style. They should be approachable and
compassionate about peopleÕs feelings, wants, and needs. These instructors should also know how
to adapt to different learning styles and personalities. Different strategies work for different
people. You just have to see what
works best for the individual.
1. ÒDriving is complexÓ
http://www.webword.com/moving/turnsignals.html
I chose this site
because it talks about turn signals and why we should use them. Turn signals allow you to communicate
with the drivers around you and prevent accidents. Signaling decreasing ambiguity, which allows other people to
react appropriately. The site goes
on to talk about Muth Mirrors, which are side mirrors that have an arrow that
lights up and blinks when you are about to turn. In the end, the site goes on to use the complexity of
driving and the use of a turn signal to the web. It relates that problems with driving and the web should not
be blamed on the technology itself, but on the people operating the
technology. I think it is
important for people to realize that they need to communicate with others
because driving is so complex.
http://www.dot.state.wi.us/drivers/drivers/aging/medical.htm
This site is from
the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. It says that driving is a complex and health problems affect
a personÕs ability to drive safely.
They go on to mention various types of heath problems and explain that
they may need to restrict a personÕs driving based on a doctorÕs
recommendation. Finally they talk
about functional abilities that may be of concern when you have health
problems, like behavioral stability and cognitive ability. I choose this because people need to
see that driving with health conditions is hazardous because of its effects on
the body.
2. ÒTrafficÓ
This website
allows you to view traffic reports, road conditions, and delays all over the
United States. I felt that this
was important because knowing the traffic situation is at least half the battle
when trying to get to a destination.
This site allows you to minimize your time in traffic. It is also better to know about traffic
a head of time, so drivers can plan their routes accordingly.
http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09%2F01%2F09%2F2248213&from=rss
This is a site
where people commented on an article about constructing a network to handle all
traffic data and road conditions.
The comments allow people to express their feelings toward traffic, the
designs of the roads, and public transportation. Its great that people can state their opinions, so hopefully
things can change.
3. ÒTailgatingÓ
Here
they discuss the fact that majority of drivers are driving too close and that
tailgating is a major cause of road rage on the freeways. They also discuss the use of chevron
markings to help drivers maintain a safe distance between them. I selected this because tailgating is a
big problem and it does lead to violence on the roadways at times.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/21/us/21tailgate.html
This
is an article about a pilot program in Minnesota to attempt to discourage
tailgating. They painted white
dots on a highway at 225 feet a part to tell drivers that there should be two
dots between vehicles. I thought
that this is an interesting way to teach people to keep a larger distance
between the cars in the front. IÕm
not sure how effective it would be all over the United States, but it seemed to
be okay for a small stretch of highway.
4. ÒDrunk drivingÓ
http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/DrinkingandDriving.html
This
website talks about the facts dealing with drinking and driving and what we can
do to solve the problems, including laws and programs. They also mention how to protect
yourself. This topic is very
important because many lives are lost because of drunk driving. The laws donÕt seem to help discourage
this dangerous act.
http://alcoholism.about.com/od/dui/Drunk_Driving.htm
This
is an informative website that has links to many different articles about drunk
driving. They allow you to learn
about it and the cost of driving and driving. It is important to be informed of ways to get help if you
are an alcoholic. Majority of the
time people donÕt know their own laws and this site will help educate them.
5. ÒLate mergerÓ
http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2008/apr/09/driver_fights_late_merging_ordinance/
The
website talks about a man who got a ticket for late merging, fought the
citation, and was successful. It
mentions that late merging is a problem for early mergers and highway officials. I thought that this was interesting
because I never heard of anyone actually getting a ticket for late
merging. I think itÕs important
for people to be informed about late merging and how it can be beneficial.
http://blog.oregonlive.com/commuting/2009/02/early_merger_to_late_merger_i.html
I
thought that this was hilarious because a man confessed to being a late merger
and some one responded by saying ÒI hope you die.Ó The article talks about why late merging causes problems and
what people think about the issue.
People get really upset at these things, but thereÕs nothing that people
can really do about it.
6. ÒHypermilingÓ
This website
explains pretty much everything that you need to know about hypermiling. It has a forum and also has a place
where you can get a meter that measures your miles per gallon. This would be a good place to look if
you wanted to learn more about hypermiling.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2008-06-23-hypermilers-saving-gas_N.htm
This article
talks about hypermiling and the benefits as well as the fact that serious
hypermilers put safety before mileage.
It gives peopleÕs persona accounts and experiences with
hypermiling. I thought that this
was more personal and it shows that becoming a hypermiler takes work.
7. ÒBan cell phone useÓ
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/01/12/cell.phone.driving/index.html
This article
tells us how many accidents are caused by cell phone use and how dangerous the
practice is. It also mentions
companies that are opposing the ban of cell phones while driving. I think that this is an important issue
because it is very relevant to Hawaii, which is undergoing the same process.
http://www.cellular-news.com/car_bans/
This website
lists all of the countries and states in America that have some type of ban on
cell phone use while driving. I
thought that this was very informative, especially for those who travel to
different countries and states. It
could save people a lot of money.
8. ÒQuality driving circlesÓ
http://www.drdriving.org/articles/qdc.htm
This article is a
good place to start looking if you are unfamiliar with the idea of QDCs. It talks about improving oneÕs driving
and gives many links to other articles where people talked about Quality
driving circles.
http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/409bf96/oshiroki/459/report2.html
This report talks
about the authorÕs personal experience with QDCs. Its nice to see that there are people taking the time to try
this type of curriculum out.
Personally, I think that it would be quite difficult to get people to
participate.
9. ÒMaking the roads a better placeÓ
http://www.bsm.co.uk/careers/about-bsm.htm
This is a site
that is for driving instructors, it mentions that their instructors not only
teach people how to drive, but they are also very passionate about making the
roads a better place. I thought
that this was very comforting to know that these instructors are enthusiastic
about their careers. If more
people felt this way, I think that drivers would act significantly different.
http://www.city-data.com/forum/jacksonville/333850-car-horn-usage-2.html
This forum talks
about a poll that people took regarding horn usage. People made many comments about how they didnÕt like what
the other people said about their own driving and thoughts. One person actually said that if they
can reach one person a day, they are making the roads a better place, but it
was sarcastic. I thought that this
was pertinent to our course because of the fact that it shows that people are
resistant to change and are okay with the way that people drive today.
10. ÒSpeed limitÓ
http://www.motorists.org/speedlimits/
This site
addresses many of the questions that we asked in class, concerning how speed
limits are set, if driving slower is better, and if people would drive faster
if the speed limits were increased.
These common questions are answered, which I feel is very helpful
because a lot of people donÕt take the time to think about why the speed limits
are set the way that they are.
People just complain about their speeding tickets and how slow other
people drive.
http://www.k-state.edu/media/newsreleases/april09/speedlimit41009.html
This article
discusses that people determine the speed at which they drive depending on how
comfortable they are. They did a
study with gravel roads and found that the composition and width of the roads
affected the speed at which people traveled. They also went on to say that this cannot be generalize to
regular roads. I think that this
could potentially help the speed issues on the regular road, but people are
overconfident in their ability to gage how fast they should go. Either way I think that it shows that
determining a speed limit that will keep everyone happy is very difficult to
find.