I. “Unusual niceties by some local drivers”- Mike Leidemann

A. Many Hawaiian drivers may be too polite for the new age of driving.

1. Example: stopping to let cars merge, slowing down too much when it rains, yielding to drivers making left turns across traffic.

B. Pro-social behavior

1. Empathy-altruism hypothesis= The proposal that some social behavior is motivated by the desire to help someone in need.

2. Empathic joy hypothesis= the proposal that pro-social behavior is motivated by the positive emotion a helper anticipates experiencing as the result of having a beneficial impact on the life of someone in need.

C. Education: Necessary to teach, understand and remember that cooperation is better for traffic flow than competition. Drivers working together will only make life smoother on the roads.

II. Culture of the roadway

A. “culture of the roadway”= a common set of values that the vast majority of drivers and other road users know about, understand and practice

1. Example: styles of driving, driving attitudes, and philosophies

B. Groupthink= the tendency of the members of highly cohesive groups to assume that their decisions can’t be wrong, that all members must support the group’s decisions strongly, and that information contrary to it should be ignored.

C. Education: We need training that will set standards and establish a common ground of attitudes, skills and expectations irregardless of where one may be driving.

III. Gendered aggressive driving: Hawaii Sample

A. Results of a small Hawaii sample (12 men and thirteen women) on their thoughts and feelings behind the wheel.

1. Mild road rage or impatience= more regularly by women than men (40% vs. 28%)

2. Serious road rage or hostility= equally men and women (8% vs. 7%)

3. Severe road rage or violence=

a. Example: lane hopping, illegal turns, following very close, swearing, failure to yield, and going over the speed limit by 15 mph.

B. Drive theories of aggression= theories suggesting that aggression stems from external conditions that arouse the motive to harm or injure others.

1. Frustration-aggression hypothesis= the suggestion that frustration is a very powerful determinant of aggression.

C. Education: Need to understand that aggressive driving, hostile feelings, and violent thoughts are learned behaviors thus, it can be un-learned!

“The main bottleneck on the road to ‘smarter’ highways, cars and drivers will be in the driver’s head.” - Lawrence Lonero of Driving Lessons

www.drivers.com/article701

www.drdriving.org/surveys/hawaii_sample.htm

http://www.drivers.com/store/books/book029.shtml

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2002/Jul/29/il/il20a.html