My QDC Report
Learning to Drive All Over
(Instructions for this report)
(Instructions for the QDC forum discussions)
Table of Contents
What is a QDC?
QDC stands for Quality Driving Circle. A QDC is when a group of people, usually 5 to 10, meet and discuss driving experiences and circumstances. This enables them to influence and learn from each other. Dr. James talks about two types of QDCs on his web page http://aloha.net/~dyc/qdc.html Briefly the two types of QDCs are face to face and virtual. The face to face is when the group meets at some regularly assigned place at a regularly assigned time. The virtual is when they conduct the QDC electronically, such as over e-mail, chat rooms, phone, or even regular snail mail. One of the main ingredients in a successful QDC are tee cards. These Tee cards are little scenarios, driving techniques, or basically learning tools which express Dr. James' driving psychology. QDC participants regularly read these Tee cards which gives them a topic to talk about or something to think about while driving.
In Dr. James' psychology class we posted at least three times a week. One post was a self-witnessing report or a SWR, which was based on the TEE cards. We actively tried to think about and act upon the TEE cards while driving. We also made one reaction comment and one opinion comment. The reaction comment is in response to anyone else's post. Hopefully including some useful information or advice for the first poster. And an opinion comment is an open ended comment on anything having to do with driving. For example, one week I decided to comment on the horrible traffic in Hawaii. These three types of posts helped to create a basic outline or a guideline for our class QDCs.
What is my Idea of a QDC? Do I see Myself as a lifelong QDC member?
My idea of a QDC is that it is a tool which helps drivers, such as myself, to realize that they are aggressive drivers. I have always known that I was an aggressive driver, but I never really thought I had to improve. My theory was that I still drive fine and the slowpokes should get out of my way. The one thing that really opened my eyes was the QDCs. Granted I was forced to participate because of this class, but it really did help me to realize that there is something I can do about my driving. I wish that everyone at least had the chance to participate in a QDC, just for the experience. I could realistically see myself as a lifelong QDC member. Now, if only I could get my girlfriend to join!
Are QDCs needed?
I believe that QDCs are needed because they would greatly reduce the amount of road rage incidents, accidents, and traffic violations people got into. To me QDCs would be only beneficial if they were somehow implemented in Hawaii. The main problem with this is that how would you get anyone to join? I believe the following excerpt from Dr. Driving's QDC page explains this problem best.
But I don't see how it[QDC] could become a sufficiently large movement to change society. I think it will remain permanently on the fringe. This has nothing to do with "would it work if people would participate?" I think it would. This is just "would people participate?" And absent coercion, I don't think they would.
The only way people would participate on a large scale is *if* large numbers of people could be convinced that their *own* behavior should be improved. That road rage and aggressive driver aren't "some other idiot", but they are the product of each person's "idiot within". But Leon, if you can create that kind of large-scale self-awareness, you won't need QDCs -- you will have already ushered in the New Jerusalem.
SWR #1 posted on 01/25/00 at 2:58 AM based on tee cards week 1
I
read the TEE card and I realized that I do many negative reactions that were
listed. So I proceeded to do a self witnessing report. While I was driving to
work one day I was speeding as I usually do. Just as a side note, I usually
speed when going to work and drive very aggressive. At other times I drive more
conservatively. So, while I was driving to work, another car turned into the
lane next to me. I immediately watched his car's movements and realized that he
would probably attempt to enter my lane. This of course infuriated me and I
immediately closed the gap. The car slowed down and entered the lane behind my
car. I felt very satisfied. Then, I thought about what the TEE cards said. This
caused me to feel slightly sorry. I closed the gap only because I don't like
other cars to get ahead of me while I go to work. If I did let him in it
wouldn't have slowed me down at all.
I have realized from observing my own actions, that I am a pretty temperamental
driver. The next time I went to work, I forced myself to not be so aggressive.
The only problem that I found with not being aggressive, was that the time it
took me to get to work was increased by almost ten minutes. This is due to
missing more lights and being stuck in traffic. When I was more aggressive, I
usually made all of the lights and avoided the traffic jams.
While I was doing this SWR I was attempting to figure out why I drive the way I do, which is very aggressive. I realized how aggressive I really am after this first TEE card. But, since this was still early in the semester I had a problem trying to understand that people don't purposely cut me off. Sometimes they are just in the wrong lane, and aren't power hungry drivers. I notice that it is hard to remember that I am attempting to do a SWR while I am driving to work. What was I doing while conducting this SWR? My emotions consisted mostly of anger and irritation at being cut off. While cognitively I was thinking that noone was gonna get in my way, as I used to say to my girlfriend if she drove me to work, "NO MERCY!" And my sensorimotor habits were switching gears a lot to make sure I didn't leave much space between the car in front of me.
I feel that this first SWR didn't work out very well, especially since I still had a big urge to cut people off and be an aggressive driver. Unfortunately, I did not get any comments on this posting. I believe that everyone was still a little shy of posting and people didn't put up any posts beyond the required three.
SWR #2 posted on 01/27/00 at 6:20 PM based on tee cards week 2
I
did this self witnessing report as I was driving to work. The reason I chose to
do it while driving to work is that I go to work in heavy traffic. Also, this is
when I get pissed off the most and become aggressive.
I am a very aggressive driver, but I do not try and purposely cut people off. I
only enter someone else's lane if they either allow me in or there is a
reasonable distance from them to me. I also didn't slow down, since I was in a
hurry to beat traffic and get to work.
I didn't weave in traffic much, because I used to be one of those speed freaks
when I was in high school. I've learned a lot after having three accidents and
receiving numerous speeding tickets. Oh, and I will slow down in front of
someone else if they are driving recklessly, just to piss them off.
I always signaled when I either turned or switched lanes even if it was only
momentarily. I hate it when I drive up behind some "BIG IDIOT" at a
red light. Then expect him to drive forward when the light turns green and have
him not move, then FINALLY have him turn on his left blinker signal. That really
irritates me, since I now have to wait till he gets out of my way before I can
cross the light.
I was driving in traffic so there wasn't much of a passing lane. But I have been
at fault for staying in the passing lane and not moving over. The good thing
about that is that I'm usually exceeding the speed limit. At least I'm not one
of those slowpokes going 35 on the stupid freeway.
I never took too long to turn or to move when I was driving to work. This is due
to the fact that I have the timing of the lights down and I know exactly how
fast I have to go to catch the lights.
I yelled constantly while I drove to work. It was quite exciting and made me
laugh quite a bit. *rofl*
I was very impatient, but I don't rush people.
As the above one says I don't tailgate people. Tailgating is one of the
stupidest things a person can do. If someone were to tailgate me I would just
slam on my brakes. The person would be at fault then if he were to hit me. BTW I
was wondering if it was the person's fault for hitting me from behind, then how
does no-fault work? I've asked people for the hows of no-fault but everyone just
acts like they know what they're talking about. Noone gives me a straight
answer. For example, in the above example, even if someone were to hit me from
behind, we would both not be at fault? That's pretty stupid because if it's true
then if I wanted to repaint my car, I'll just run into someone and have the
insurance pay for it.
Sorry for all the rambling. Hmm, I usually do pass a car on the right when
he/she's turning left. But I always make sure that no other cars are coming.
I speed up to almost every yellow light that I saw on the way to work. But I
didn't run any red lights fortunately. Wow!!! I'm pretty much a top driving
offenders.
Summary of SWR #2
This SWR showed a list of the top ten driving offenses and asked which were ones we did. Unfortunately, I committed most of these driving offenses while driving to work. If I had done this SWR while driving to my girlfriend's house after school I probably wouldn't have done many of those offenses. This was the reason why I choose to do it while going to school. Hmm, while I was doing this SWR I became very upset and angry because traffic was really slowing me down. I kept thinking that most of these idiots shouldn't even have licenses. My sensorimotor habits consisted of banging on the steering wheel, giving stink eye to the slowpokes and fidgeting with the radio.
I feel that this SWR didn't work out very well, just like the first one. At least I began to realize what a crazy driver I can be. But, I wasn't attempting to improve my driving in any way. I got two comments in regards to this post. Both of them were neither real negative or real positive, but they seemed to be happy that I realized how aggressive I am. One person did make a comment that it was a good idea to see which of the top ten driving offenses I commit while driving to work. Especially since I'm at my worst while going to work. I feel that now I could see which of the top ten driving offenses I do and find out that I a much more responsible and emotionally intelligent driver.
SWR #3 posted on 01/31/00 at 4:56 AM based on tee cards week 3
I
did this swr while driving from town to Mililani. Unfortunately, I committed
many of the aggressive things while I was driving. I 1)kept track of how many
cars I was passing, 2) kept track of how many cars were passing me, 3)watch
which lane is faster or slower, 4) kept track of whether someone made me brake,
5) hmm I didn't really watch how many lights I made because I was on the freeway
most of the time, 9) I did speed over that stretch of road, hehehe when I drive
to Mililani I always speed up a lot when I see the Mililani mauka 1 mile sign,
mainly because it's a straight away and it's easy to see any cops. That is until
I reach the Mililani town area, because cops always hide under that stupid
underpass. 11) This is the last thing I keep track of, whether I stopped someone
from entering my lane. I always do that while I'm driving on the freeway. These
idiots who are merging from the on-ramps don't seem to realize that they build
up their speed on the ON-RAMP! They get on the freeway going about 35 then
slowly accelerate. That really bugs me so I always cut off the slowpokes.
Wow, as I pointed out in swr #2, I really am an aggressive driver. Sigh, I
should try and fix that. Oh well, laters.
This SWR asked which of a the items on a list I kept track of subconsciously. Supposedly, if you keep track of most of the items you were an aggressive driver. As was expected I pretty much failed and committed seven out of the twelve items. While I was doing this SWR I was actually in a very calm mood. I had just finished work and was just 'cruising' to my girlfriend's house in Mililani. I had no reason to rush and was on the tired side so didn't really pay too much attention to my speed. I did notice that I was thinking I commit a lot of those subconscious items on the TEE card. I didn't fidget much or bang my steering wheel this time, but I was using my cell phone for a little while. Mainly to check my bank balance and see if I got any voice mails. The one thing I notice is that when I 'cruise' I drive around speed limit, until I notice someone pass me then I feel like I'm being a slowpoke and speed up. Can you say "bad habit!"
This is when the SWRs actually seemed to have a small impact on me. I actually thought "Wow, I shouldn't be so aggressive and competitive." Like one my responders said, "Just understanding that driving is not a competition can negate these feelings and actions." I actually had to think about my driving habits this time and I realized that I do get carried away. If noone else was on the freeway I'd probably drive around the speed limit, but the presence of other speeders made me an aggressive driver. As a final note, I'd like to say that this SWR wasn't the one that actually made me realize that maybe I should improve my driving and become emotionally intelligent, but that the first three worked to cause this effect.
SWR #4 posted on 02/11/00 at 4:47 PM based on tee cards week 4
I
complain to myself about other drivers or the traffic - on some trips.
I get annoyed or irritated by some drivers. - on some trips.
I feel frustration and anger in congested traffic. - on every trip.
I drive like I'm in a hurry, leaving slower drivers behind. - on some trips.
I honk at drivers who upset me. - never.
I tailgate slower drivers who refuse to move over. - on some trips.
I yell at drivers, and if they deserve it, I give them the finger. - on some
trips.
I break speed limits. - on every trip.
I go through red lights. - never.
I drive impaired. - on some trips.
I scored two nevers, six some trips, and two every trip. I guess I have a
moderate to high level of road rage. I asked my friend to fill out this form in
regards to my driving. My friend said that how I scored it was pretty accurate.
She did say that on some she wasn't sure if it was some or never. I'd have to
agree on that one because every and never are so strong. Sometimes I've done one
of these transgressions maybe just once. But when I look at the questionnaire,
it says never, so I mark "some trips." The questionnaire should be
less extreme and have a "usually," "once in awhile,"
"rarely," and choices like that.
Still I believe that this evaluation has shown that I have road rage sometimes.
I would place myself in the moderate road rage slot not the dangerous road rage
slot.
What was I trying to do affectively, cognitively, and sensorimotorly (don't even think this is a word) during this trip? The above question is a bit difficult to answer seeing as how this is just a questionnaire on my usual driving habits. So I just answered the question to the best of my knowledge.
I feel that this SWR helped to prove to myself that I am a pretty aggressive driver. I didn't really like this SWR because I don't feel that it proves whether someone is an aggressive driver or not. Mainly because the choices were too limited. Unfortunately I did not receive any responses to this posting. Nevertheless, I feel that I was slowly improving myself as a driver by this point.
SWR #5 posted on 02/21/00 at 2:39 PM based on tee cards week 5
I
wasn't exactly sure about this swr. Mainly because I show signs of both phases.
I'm sure not a perfect phase 2, but I'm not as horrible as the phase 1 suggests.
I become angered and bothered. So I'm not very tolerant. But I almost never
perform acts which endanger my safety. I am always attentive and watch the road.
Especially when I'm speeding.
When I was in high school a long time ago. I used to race, I know stupid, but
that was before. Well, I used to be the most attentative and watchful while I
raced. When I wasn't racing I wasn't very cautious. Because I was just cruising
and not paying attention. So sometimes I'm at my most aware while driving
aggressively. I always know my limits, that is I will only speed up to a certain
point. I don't drive ridiculously fast like others. The point I'm trying to get
across is that while I am still do things in phase 1 I think a lot more
cautiously such as in phase 2, even while I'm being aggressive.
Summary of SWR #5
During my driving for this SWR I was my normal aggressive self while driving to work. My thoughts were different from normal though, I kept thinking I'm not phase 1 but I'm not phase 2 either. I'm sort of an in-between phase, phase 1.5. Nah, I'm actually more like phase 1.3 since I'm more on the aggressive driving side. Maybe this phase system could be expanded just like the previous TEE card for SWR #4 should be expanded. I also kept thinking that being a so called "safe driver" doesn't mean they are very good drivers. Some of the worst drivers I've seen drive at the speed limit and never tailgate, race, run red lights, stop signs, etc, etc. But, they are horrible drivers, they are very dangerous and regardless of how much they try, they always endanger themselves. I still believe that maybe a phase 1.5 driver is the best!!
I feel like this SWR worked out quite well. It helped me to realize that even non-aggressive drivers aren't safe drivers. One time Dr. James said that the person driving under the speed limit, while the rest of traffic is exceeding it, is actually causing traffic. I feel that this sort of person should just keep up with traffic. The only comment that I received was from another QDCer who agreed with my assessment that being a non-aggressive driver does not necessarily make you a good driver. They said that when they speed they are also at their best. I have to agree. I don't plan to speed all over the place just to be more attentive, but I don't plan to become a slowpoke driver who snails all over the place.
SWR #6 posted on 02/26/00 at 6:43 PM based on tee cards week 6
I
have been trying Dr. Driving's techniques this past week and I really like them.
I was surprised that they worked. It is pretty amazing that such simple
techniques can work so well. For example counting to ten? It works pretty good.
Also counting my blessings, forgiving and forgetting is pretty useful. The only
problem I had with this one is the fact that I usually don't worry about how my
friends and family would feel if I was late. I usually worry that the one I cut
off or yell at will be a friend or relative. Now wouldn't that be embarrassing.
Sounds like a selfish reason, but it helps to calm me down. I actually do make
funny noises I just do it in my own way. I call people names and make fun of
them. It may sound like aggression, but this makes me laugh a lot. And this is
the purpose of making funny noises, to laugh. So my way works pretty good too. I
don't think I have the patience to try some of the other methods, such as the
driving makeover. It would take too long and I'm pretty impatient.
Overall, these techniques are good and although all of them may not be suitable
for you, at least one technique is going to assist you in being a better driver.
Okay, before I went driving for this SWR I wrote down all of the calming techniques on a piece of paper. I studied them pretty well and tried to use each one at least twice. I also didn't fidget with my cell phone or play with the radio, I just concentrated on remembering to try the techniques. To tell you the truth, I didn't think that the techniques would help me very much.
Lo and behold my surprise when most of the techniques calmed me quite a bit. I counted to ten, laughed a lot, and even counted my blessings. I got quite a few responses to this post. Many people were glad that I tried the techniques and agreed with me that not all the techniques are suitable for everyone. However, some people disagreed they pointed out that driving is one area where individuality should not be a priority. They said that sticking to the rules and conforming is more important in creating a safe environment. That may be true in regards to speeding and running people off the road. But I didn't understand why they took such a strong stance in regards to calming techniques? Maybe they got upset or were confused? Oh well, who knows, maybe I just misunderstood their post? Hmm, these are some of the bad things about a virtual QDC. But, in a face to face QDC I don't know if the same person would have said how they felt. They might be shy in real life. Just some food for thought.
By the way, I do plan to use some of the techniques which I preferred in my future driving career. Hopefully I can get my friends and family to try out some of these techniques also.
SWR #7 posted on 03/07/00 at 12:12 AM based on tee cards week 7
I
have acknowledged that I am part of the problem a long time before I read this
tee card. I realized this from our other discussions on this board. I have to
say though that prior to this class I did consider myself as almost excellent,
not quite but almost. Kind of conceited, yes, but I have learned my mistake.
I think I have realized what my own errors and transgressions are. Hmm I might
need help on this one, maybe I'll ask a friend or family member? But I did do a
pretty good job this weekend of noting the errors that I could see. Such as
speeding up to catch a yellow light, barely stopping at a stop sign, and making
a double lane switch (that is going two lanes over without stopping.)
I have already begun this modification phase of driving. I recently was tailed
by an older lady, I was surprised that I didn't get upset. It didn't even bother
me when she cut back in front of me just to annoy me. Hopefully this minor
incident means that I am on the right track to improving myself. I sure hope so.
Summary of SWR #7
When I first read this TEE card I was thinking wow I've changed a lot already because of this class. I got ready for my driving session by being a lot calmer than I usually am. My cognitive habits have improved and I don't immediately think of a person as an "idiot." I actually try and evaluate why they did something. Sensorimotor-wise I feel a lot more relaxed while I drive. I feel like there isn't a rush to get to where I'm going anymore. I just lean back in my car and enjoy the drive.
This SWR seemed to be very successful. I realized how much I have changed during the course of this class and the QDC. I also realized that other drivers don't infuriate me like they used to. I actually am able to just let it go.
I got one comment on this post, it was a very positive one. The person seemed genuinely happy that I know I am improving and felt the same way. I also remember someone mentioning that they were glad that I was becoming a more emotionally intelligent driver during class. I, for one, plan to keep on evaluating myself continuously, and keep modifying my errors. Maybe my family members or friends could help me to modify myself, kind of like the driving buddy theory.
SWR #8 posted on 03/12/00 at 7:55 PM based on tee cards week 8
First,
off I'd like to say that I am actually not that saddened by this incident. I may
sound like a prick or a a**hole, but I am glad that two people who would wield
handguns and shoot at each other, met the other. At least it wasn't a situation
which involved someone who just meant to talk to the other person, then got
shot. I have never owned a gun and even if I do decide to purchase one I would
not carry it in my vehicle.
I do agree with Dr. James assessment that they both had many chances to break
the chain of events and avoid this altercation. I do feel that if these two had
not happened to meet in this road rage incident, they would have caused another
road rage incident at a later date.
I sometimes wonder, though, do these people who experience road rage really not
have control of themselves? The tee card said that many of these "killers
were taken by surprise at their own ferocity." I have trouble believing
this. Were they really surprised or did they just say that so as to not look
bad? It sounds like a good idea to claim that you were too emotionally aroused.
I feel that many of these people just use that as an excuse. Just my two cents.
I was surprised to read this article and I feel that this would probably never happen to me. I'm sorry to say but as I said in my posting I am still glad that these two met each other. "taken by surprise at their own ferocity." Sorry, I still feel like that is pretty much a crock of sh*t.
This SWR went well because I noticed that this TEE card created a lot of discussion on the subject of wielding handguns and open aggression in regards to driving. I got two responses and they both agreed, which seemed to be the consensus across the board, that the two drivers shouldn't have had guns in the first place. I just hope people like them don't harass any sane drivers and just stick to getting into altercations with other "insane", to put it nicely, drivers.
I am going to always remember this TEE card and not drive drunk, or carry a handgun, or chase other drivers. I think the worst thing I ever will do is stick my finger at someone. I know that 's still bad, but I'm only human!
SWR #9 posted on 03/21/00 at 12:49 AM based on tee cards week 9
First
off, did anyone try that message bay thing? If they did reply to my post because
I want to listen to it. I have a microphone at home but I'm too shame to talk
over the internet. (hahaha) Just as my two cents, this new format seems a lot better, except it takes me longer to load the pages now. Good thing I have
roadrunner.
I have to say that all four of the activities to do with your children sound
very good. I will make sure to remember this when I have children. If not
they'll get plenty of tickets like me.
Anyway, the only thought I have regarding this tee card is that I always watched
cartoons with car chases, etc, etc. I used to "play car" or whatever
it is called with my friends. Or we would use our little bikes and bang each
other. Yeah we got hurt a little, but turned out to be fine drivers. Maybe we
got a ticket or in my case three+, but I don't think I'm the most dangerous
driver.
My point is that I feel the most dangerous drivers have problems to begin with.
This means that there should be stricter requirements to drive a car. I've said
this in other posts and I'll say it again, I would be very happy if many people
were not allowed to drive. If this includes me, then so be it. My fault if I
can't pass the test.
Dr. James' idea of CARR is still a good idea. Except for the fact that the
children that probably need this program, have parents who believe that they
themselves are good drivers. Oh well.
I don't have any cognitive, affective, or sensorimotor habits to talk about for this SWR, because this TEE card involved just reading about CARR, Dr. James driving idea for children. I do think this TEE card did what it was intended to do, because I among others in the class have realized that it is very important to teach our children about driving from a young age. Although, I still think that the really messed up drivers and road ragers probably have major problems in the first, it still is a good idea to instill emotional intelligence in our children.
I got one response to this SWR which agreed that people who have serious driving problems are usually mentally messed up somehow. But, when I do have children I will go over some of the ideas discussed in this TEE card and I will hopefully encourage them to have emotional intelligence.
SWR #10 posted on 3/29/00 at 1:39 AM based on tee cards week 10
I
for one am glad that these postings are over. I just am lazy to type a lot. But,
I really do enjoy doing this. I think I would be pretty inclined to continue
these postings just to have something to do while I use the internet. Especially
since I use the internet for about four hours everyday. Pretty psycho yeah! Oh
well, on to this swr.
I like this TEE card because it says to think of the driving community as a
virtual community. This sort of relates to one of my posts where I felt that
when I go walking everyone is nice and says hi. Whereas noone says hi when you
are driving. My grandmother used to say that when she first got a car, there
were almost no cars. So she used to just cruise along and drivers would never
get in her way. She had no idea how to parallel park so she would stop her car
in the road, and ask someone to parallel her car for her. She said she liked to
ask policemen to do it for her.
Sounds kind of weird yeah? But I guess it's true. My reasoning is that the roads
aren't like this anymore, because of the amount of cars on the road. I mean
think about it. If you went walking and the sidewalk was packed all the way to
the store. How would you feel? I for one would be a super grouch. I would be
shoving and pushing just like at a club. If you want to get to the other side of
the club you better be prepared to push your way through. Maybe, as I've said
before, less people should be allowed to drive. This would greatly help reduce
road rage and also help us Americans get in shape, by having to walk everywhere.
But, then again we'd have sidewalk rage. Hahaha, sorry that was lame. Laters
all!
Finally, the last summary of my SWR's. Wow, if you read this far, I gotta admit you have a lot of time on your hands. Hope your not doing an oral on my paper, that would be embarrassing. Oh well, best of luck if you are.
Hmm, I'm sorry about this but I just noticed that I only read the first TEE card for this exercise. It seems that two TEE cards were supposed to be read. Well anyway, I'll just do my summary anyway. I did a bit of driving and reflecting on previous driving sessions for this SWR. I decided to have an open mind and try and think why people do what they do. It actually helps me to not get upset when someone makes a mistake or cuts me off. I also thought about my grandmother a lot when I drove for this SWR. She used to get honked at a lot and even yelled at. This was because she was always cautious, a slow driver, and a bit on the older side. I felt ashamed when I was younger and she got yelled at, but now I realize that my grandmother did nothing wrong. She learned to drive when there was a sense of community among drivers. She wasn't used to this fast paced driving community of the present. Where most drivers are very rude and don't have any sense of a community.
Because of this TEE card and this SWR I have learned to respect elderly people a bit more and understand where they are coming from. Hopefully people won't honk at me when I grow old.
Over the course of this class and this QDC, I feel that I have changed greatly. This virtual QDC with my classmates has helped to open my eyes and realize my errors as a driver. I can say that this QDC has only improved the quality of my driving and increased my emotional intelligence. At first I thought these postings were a waste of time and just wrote them to get it over with. Then I actually thought about the TEE cards or postings almost all of the time I was driving. I even used to evaluate myself just for my own benefit, not because a TEE card told me to. The SWRs were very helpful and I wish everyone would just try them for a couple of weeks. Because it took me a couple of weeks to get into them.
I felt that the other students in this driving psychology course improved greatly. It was very noticeable with some people through their SWRs or postings. Whereas in other cases it was noticeable in class. One thing that I did notice was that the majority of the women were already against speeding and aggressive driving, but a lot of guys didn't really think anything was wrong with aggressive driving. At least this seemed to be the feeling at first, then I noticed many guys become a lot more open to suggestions and comments about improving their driving. This just goes to show that the class as a whole has improved because of the QDCs.
I think everyone who participated in the QDCs made a great contribution. The biggest contribution that I feel I mad was a negative one at first. I would comment when people made posts against aggressive drivers. Because I had trouble understanding what was wrong with aggressive driving. I feel that this helped to spark up some conversations. But, around the middle I began to change and realized that even though I'm not a horrible driver I am a very aggressive one. So I began modifying my driving habits and I feel that this was shown in my postings.
My conclusion in light of what I have previously stated is simple. QDCs work! They really do and I feel that they should be implemented world wide. As Dr. Driving said, it should be a requirement to receive your license that you participate in a QDC. The only requirement for a QDC is to be open minded and I feel that this is one of the biggest problems, not everyone is going to go into a QDC program with an open mind. As they say, "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink." Sorry, I just had to throw that one in. Corny? Yeah, but it made me laugh. See ya in the next section.
The main suggestion that I have for future generations is that this report was hard! It took a lot of time and effort and required me to remember how I felt and acted at the time. I am strongly recommending that future generations take good notes while driving for the SWRs. I took no notes and had a hard time recalling everything. Maybe like Dr. James says, use a tape recorder or jot down some notes when you come to your destination. I sure wish I had it would have made this assignment a lot easier.
The first thing I learned during this QDC was that "Yes, I am an aggressive driver!" Trust me, this is the hard part. Then I took note of why I was an aggressive driver and what this led me to do while driving. Finally, I attempted to modify my behaviors and habits to drive more emotionally intelligent. Overall, I feel that I did a pretty good job.
The one suggestion that I have for future generations to take this QDC further is to not only discuss topics with classmates, but also have strangers on the discussion board. A few strangers or names that I didn't know did show up once in awhile, but not enough to make a difference. Maybe all three of Dr. James' classes could post on the QDC board. This way the class would be talking with more than just the same people. Just my two cents, take care everyone and drive safe. Hope you are still awake and enjoyed the report.
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