Report 1:
G5 Looks at Traffic Psychology Resources on the Internet: General Principles and Explanations

Everybody has done a few traveling in some part of their lives, right? This can range from taking a walk to the store, driving your car to school or work, flying across oceans, and many more. Unfortunately, these trips that we make from one destination to another may not end up so glorious. Sometimes, it could turn into built up frustration and anger. So why do people behave in this manner if traveling and being in traffic is naturally a part of our daily lives? And what can we do about it? Well, one solution is to have everyone gain a better understanding of Traffic Psychology. This report introduces and explains many questions that I had about Traffic Psychology. At the start of this class, I thought it will only deal with driving but it is more than that. It is about how one reaction can have an effect on another, witnessing and modifying your behaviors, relating it to other aspects of your life, and many more. I feel that Traffic Psychology is an excellent opportunity to find out who you really are. By doing so, this allows a person to strive for and live in a healthy lifestyle.

Dr. Driving on the Internet: Summary and Reactions

Visit Dr. Driving's site

(1) Inner Power at the Wheel

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After visiting Dr. Driving's site, a reader should find 13 Menu items to click on. The first one on this list is Inner Power at the Wheel Book Chapters. This site describes and summarizes the book, Inner Power at the Wheel. It contains 14 Chapters with topics like Anger on the Road, Driving Personality Make-Over, Car Talk, and with 4 chapters that is available on-line for you to read. The purpose of this site is to help people diagnose their own personality and to alleviate any aggression and hostility that they may have. This book contains confessions of other drivers which you can read and compare. As a result, the reader is allowed to decide for themselves whether they want to make any changes. Another way to help improve this hostile environment is to practice "self-witnessing" in traffic. When a person takes the initiative to truly observe themselves, they are more likely to overcome any resistance they have. The last step that was mentioned is to create a "driving personality make-over". This is where all the action takes place. In other words, a person may realize that they have a problem but if they don't do anything to help themselves then it is worthless. The idea is to create a plan for yourself which is healthy and one that you can maintain. This method has been used and widely accepted in many theories. Overall, this books encourages people to want to change and includes facts from hundreds of "traffic witnesses" who volunteered to record themselves while driving.

(2) Media Interviews with Dr. Driving

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The second Menu Item that you will find in Dr. Driving's site is Media Interviews with Dr. Driving about Road Rage, Impatience, and Hostility. I see the main purpose of this page is to answer these questions: What causes aggressiveness and hostility among drivers?, Why is this happening now?, and How should we handle it? This helps to inform the public about being aware about their driving personalities. Here, Dr. Driving gave several interviews on the problem and increase of violent accidents to news reporters and radio talk show hosts. This is a very useful tool to get a message across because the more types or forms of communication that are generated, the chances of someone running into it would be high. For example, publishing these societal problems not only through the internet but in books, newspaper articles, radio talk, and even television can create access to a wide range of people. Throughout the years of research by Dr. Driving, he has developed a three-step process to help drivers transform their negative feelings while driving. This is known as: 1)Acknowledge, 2)Witness, 3)Modify. By following these three steps and I quote Dr. Driving, "People are ecstatic when they try it. They discover a new inner strength they didn't know they had. It restores their feeling of community with other drivers. It protects them from negativity and its dangers. It brings back the pleasure and fun that driving used to be or can be. It encourages the positive and creative aspect of your personality". This process is related to Traffic Psychology because it teaches us to strive as a community as drivers and making your driving experience more pleasurable.

(3) Three Step Program

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The third Menu Item explains further the complete Three-Step Program to Healthier and More Zestful Driving. The purpose of this page is to provide readers with a clear and straightforward explanation of this process of change. After analyzing each step, there are a few other transitions that lead from one to another until its final product is obtained. For example, within the second step-(Witness), your knowledge leads to judgment and then to wisdom. The same is true for the other two steps. All three steps allows you to work on any negative feelings, thoughts, and actions that you may hold. It's implications are to be in control of your self and not have others take control over you by making you angry and frustrated. I see this more like a chain reaction. If another driver was to make me upset, I would probably take it out on another person and from them to others. This could be one reason why their is so much tension among drivers. It is a never ending story.

(4) Problems and Solutions

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Dr. Driving Says...Problems and Solutions was another interesting topic which is an interactive learning site. This site contains previous questions written to Dr. Driving and on the side of it contains his comments and answers to them. The purpose of this page is to provide commonly asked questions or problems that drivers face and then the solutions are there available for a wide range of readers to gain a personal ground with Dr. Driving. It would be similar to having myself write to him (If I had the same problem) and getting a response but this saves me the trouble of writing to him because it's already there for me to read. The relation this has to Traffic Psychology is that Dr. Driving talks about having a multiple personality syndrome as a driver. It is like a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde switch that takes place in our cars. I remember clearly how multiple personalities were covered in Abnormal Psychology. Clearly, this is seen as dysfunctional and needs treatment. Do we actually change our personalities when we enter our cars? I think this transformation is possible because the more we distance ourselves from other people (riding in our cars) the more likely we are to perform these negative acts. For example, it is easier to blow up a bomb in a building killing hundreds of people rather than face to face and trying to break the person's neck. However, the person must be truly cynical or diseased for even trying to commit these acts. I know this example was a little too strong but I only see tailgating, speeding, and reckless driving just as dangerous because it can kill. I don't think this implies to me because this kind of behavior not only endangers the lives of others but it also puts me on the line. I try not to let inconsiderate drivers bother me because I would be just like them if I tried to get my revenge.

(5) Dr. Driving Says...

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One of the first statements that Dr. Driving says is that you can change your traffic life by making a driving personality make-over. I think this is true because even the best drivers can improve on their behaviors. The purpose of this page was to provide helpful tips on how to make this change for the better. These easy-to-follow techniques created by Dr. Leon James and Dr. Diane Nahl teaches us useful skills in areas like how to control your hostility, how to deal with frustration, how to acquire self-awareness, and many more. It's relation to Traffic Psychology is to practice these techniques to improve one's traffic life. This process tries to eliminate a person's negative emotions and stress while driving and changing our competitive driving style to a cooperative one. This doesn't imply to me because I always try to become a good driving role model with anyone riding in the car. as a result, my driving experience usually ends up more peaceful, enjoyable, and safe.

(6) About the Authors

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About the authors is a page set up to describe the credibility of Dr. Leon James and Dr. Diane Nahl. When I first got to this page, I was quite impressed by the amount of work they had accomplished because it looked highly professional and respectable. I think that the purpose of this page is to focus on readers who may become skeptical about their works and teachings and to let them decide whether to believe it or not. However, by looking at their lengthy continuation of this practice and credentials it proves that their methods are trustworthy and effective.

(7) Driving Personality Chart

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There are nine zones with the Driving Personality Chart. Within this chart contains three major divisions: thoughts, feelings, and actions. Each division is further divided into safety issues, self control issues, and social responsibility issues. This chart also describes both positive and negative aspects of each term such as one's attitude holds a disregard for rules (negative value) and a respect of authority (positive aspect). The purpose of this page is to provide a breakdown of one's driving personality and to find the areas that need the most work. A person should try to achieve positive aspects in all of the domains and maintain it throughout one's life. After looking at this chart and comparing it to myself, I find that sometimes I tend to get tense and egotistical while I am driving. I usually get tense and egotistical while I am waiting in traffic because I hate wasting my time just waiting around. I start to believe that I should be in the front of everybody and I get impatient. As more drivers begin to use the roads every year, I feel that working with the problems I have will be beneficial because the more reckless drivers there are on the roads the risk of an accident would probably be high and finally the traffic will get worst. Overall, the community suffers as a whole when people are not concerned about safety and responsibility.

(8) Comments

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Comments by visitors expresses the thanks to Dr. Driving for changing and improving the lives of many people. The purpose of this page is provide readers with different success stories which generates the idea that it is a possible task to accomplish. For many people, change is very difficult because they enjoy living their life the way it is. This provides them with their own self-identity and freedom. When people begin to tell them that they need change, they may become hostile and aggressive. But, by reading how people wanted to change for the better, it made analyze my life to see how I could benefit from Dr. Driving's teachings. I think one of the comments that was mentioned stating that it is not a job for a driver to correct another drivers behavior implies to me because I feel that I and others have to take the initiative first to make any changes. I believe that when I am pressured to do something that I don't want to the more I tend to resist. In relation to Traffic Psychology, the techniques that Dr. Driving implies serves only as tools to help and guide people on the right track. These techniques can also be related to other aspects of one's life and if they choose the option for change in their driving personality then they are more likely to change other negative characteristics within their personality.

(9) Driving and Traffic Resources on the Internet

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Driving and Traffic Resources on the Internet contains links and briefs descriptions of what they are about. On this page, you can find information and topics that are discussed in newsgroups and what traffic psychologists are interested in. By using the World Wide Web, many browsers are able to look up terms, leave their comments or "driving confessions", or do a self-witnessing/self-modification exercise. This page serves as an educational site of topics related to traffic psychology. Some of the implications made on this page is that changing our driving personality with start with our ego first and then it will generate outward towards other drivers. I believe this is true because having good role models can create a healthy learning environment.

(10) Psychological Principles

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After clicking on Psychological Principles To Help Us Be Rational and Humane Drivers, you will find a list of some rules to live by in order to become healthy individuals. Dr. Driving lists up to 18 principles to follow while driving. The purpose of this page is to create rational mental guidelines. Our brains is one of the most powerful developments we have as humans and we are constantly gaining new knowledge with it. But, when we disregard these teachings, we become ignorant of what could change our lives that can be enriched and enjoyable. Some of the implications about my own driving personality is that we all make mistakes and I have the opportunity to do something about it. I can make the same mistake or learn from it and change my behaviors.

(11) Self-Witnessing Exercise

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Self-Witnessing Exercise: What's your driving pet peeve? contains writings of 11 Witnesses. All of them are answering the same questions but with different answers. This kind of self-observation helps a person to acknowledge any problems that they may have as a driver. Most of these exercises describe what makes them upset the most. The four steps these witnesses went through are as follows: 1. Write down one thing automobile drivers do that gets you upset. 2. What do you feel like doing about it at the time? 3. What do you usually do about it? 4. Are you satisfied with what you do or do you hope to change it? The purpose of this page is to allow the reader to do this exercise for themselves. I tried it out and here are my results: 1. The one thing that other automobile drivers do that gets me upset is tailgating 2. I feel like I have to speed up or just slamming on the brakes. 3. I usually maintain my speed or try to drive really slow so they can pass me. 4. I think I am satisfied with what I do because they usually pass by me pretty quick and later I see them disappear in the distance. I feel this is a pretty good technique because it gets me far away as possible from these drivers. By examing our own behaviors, we become consciously aware of the problems we may have and the areas we need to work on. This is also useful because I may not any problems in one area of my self but I may find many others by answering the same four questions. I feel that everybody should give this a try.

(12) Topical Index

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Index of Topics on Driving and Drivers is like any other index. This is very useful because it provides viewers with a list of alphabetical terms, names, and topics that they might be interested in. Because it uses key terms to choose from it makes your search easier and simpler. This page also contains many links to interesting reports, discussions, issues, ideas, principles, and home pages.

(13) Safety Issues

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Dr. Driving's Selection of Safety Issues brought up by drivers contains 9 parts ranging from issues like driving the speed limit, why I tailgate, road rage, driver education, and aloha sprit driving. This page is somewhat similar to that of the Problems and Solutions page discussed earlier. They contain questions/issues and responses from Dr. Driving. For the most part of this page, it contains comments from the rec.autos.driving newsgroups. The purpose of this page is to provide open discussions on any topic they want to talk about driving. In return, Dr. Driving supplies general principles associated with traffic psychology. For example, one advice for tailgate haters that you may find in here is "not to take it personally, especially since the tailgaters may have all sorts of reasons for doing it, or may not be aware of it, or is addicted to it, or whatever. It doesn't matter you see -- we don't have to find out or imagine it. The point is: How do I protect myself? Being a tailgate hater, I think this implies to me because I always try to figure out the safest way to get out of this situation. I know sometimes I tend to tailgate some other drivers and now I know the feeling of being tense and angry of having somebody follow you about two feet away. I tried changing my driving behaviors like keeping a good distance away from other drivers and not speeding and I feel that I enjoy driving more than usual and that people should always try to change for the better.

Alta Vista Search

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Dr. Driving's Philosophy

After reviewing these 13 items, there is an additional Menu item called "Submit" which will take you to an Alta Vista search in USENET after clicking on it. It takes a while for the computer to connect but once the page is completed, it will list 45 documents that has matched the query. This list consists of newsgroup postings from the rec.autos.driving newsgroup. The threads in which Dr. Driving was active in are: Slay your dragon, Speed Kills, Speed Limits and Driving Skills, Dateline NBC Story, Embarassing moments when Driving, Road Rage and hostility, and Hey, Tailgaters... . These threads provides many readers with a variety of topics to discuss and questions about Dr. Driving's philosophy.

After reading some postings, there seems to be a consistent message that Dr. Driving is sending out to the public. He talks about joining a Quality Driving Circle which is like a support group of driving friends who discuss driving incidents and to learn how to become more aware of their aggressive behaviors. I think Dr. Driving's philosophy is that you should respect other drivers and focus on social driving behaviors. Social driving behaviors are working together as a community where one person can help influence another person by becoming examples of healthy individuals. Within every situation, Dr. Driving wants each individual to question their behaviors. For example, you need to ask yourself- "Is this right? Is this fair? Am I being the kind of person I want to model for my children?". By doing this self-evaluation, you "prime yourself to be more tolerant, more humane, more rational, more like a true hero!!". One of the major points that Dr. Driving mentions is to be "positive" and use "facilitative driving" (not "defensive"). I feel that the messages Dr. Driving presents calls for active participation of always changing for the better. I think there are no limitations to kindness because there are many situations people face each day that tests one's ability to show some kind of humane behavior. But, in order to help others, we must first start working with ourselves.

Many people reacted with a lot of rage and hostility towards Dr. Driving's philosophy. Many of them felt that they didn't need any changes. In one message sent to Dr. Driving, it says "OH, JESUS, LEON! Now there's DRAGONS? What the hell have you been SMOKING out there? Why don't you just get into your car, pick a compass direction, and take a 100-mile trip? [GLUB!] It's not like the Pacific isn't polluted enough, but at least it'll keep your insipid kind from ever polluting the Midwest". It seems to me that most of the complaints are from people with total outrage and have not yet grasp an understanding of the "Aloha Spirit". These people who are not really open to change appears to have some form of selfish behaviors. They are highly defensive and seem to be only thinking about themselves. Many people dispute his philosophy when they haven't given it a chance to try it out for themselves. If these people consider their driving personalities as one of the best, then why are they such angry and frustrated individuals? I would hate to drive on the roads with a reckless driver but there are many ways to avoid them also. If their philosophy is to speed and be ahead of everyone else, then that is their choice but at least I have a better chance of getting to my destination in one piece. I remember my father telling me once about running red lights, "That it only takes a few seconds of waiting as compared to getting a ticket or into an accident". Which consequence shall you choose?

My reactions to the reactions that Dr. Driving receives is that these people are turning away a good opportunity to become "rational" human beings. Dr. Driving's philosophy only pertains to a small part of our lives. Because his only focus is on our driving personalities, it allows many individuals to take that first step of living a healthier lifestyle. By following his teachings, we can learn more about ourselves and others. From this first step of change, Dr. Driving's philosophy generates easily to other aspects of our lives. We can learn to become better parents, workers, educators, and so forth. I feel that they should at least try to let "positive" behaviors to develop because it takes time for a person to change. I think that Dr. Driving has handled this situation very well because he provides a different alternative and approach towards solving their problems without getting angry himself. He should continue to send out his positive feedbacks because there are many drivers who are thankful and happier by following Dr. Driving's philosophy.

My Favorite Traffic Psychology Resources: Finding the Answers

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Aggression and Violence Among Drivers
What causes traffic violence? Find out about topics like the Comic Book Driver Mentality, Need for Better Moral Training, Six Ways to Avoid Traffic Violence, and the National Drive the Limit Day.

Drivers Anonymous
Find out about community groups getting together and talk about issues relating to Traffic.

Driving School
I thought this was funny because this contains quotes from the Toronto news of actual statements found on insurance forms and were written by drivers who were attempting to describe details of an accident in as few words as possible.

Self witnessing exercises
Answer these questions to find out what your pet driving peeve is.

Slaying Your Driving Dragon
How do we know if we have a driving dragon inside? Click Here to find out some symptoms.

Traffic flow Psychology
Read about disorderly merging.

Traffic Psychology in Other Places
Take a look at previous Generations of other traffic psychology classes.

Three Step Program for a Healthier, More Zestful Traffic Life
Simple and short rules to follow in your daily life.

What is Traffic Psychology?
This provides complete details involved with this topic.

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Report 1: G5 Looks at Traffic Psychology Resources on the Internet: General Principles and Explanations

Table of Contents

Introduction: The True Test

Dr. Driving on the Internet: Summary and Reactions

(1) Inner Power at the Wheel

Alta Vista Search

Dr. Driving's Philosophy

My Favorite Traffic Psychology Resources: Finding the Answers

Report 1:
G5 Looks at Traffic Psychology Resources on the Internet: General Principles and Explanations