Report 1: G5 Looks at Traffic Psychology on the Internet

Table of Contents

Introduction
Inner Power at the Wheel
Media Interviews with Dr. Driving
Three Step Program
Dr. Driving Says...
About the Authors
Chart of the Nine Zones
Comments by Visitors
Driving and Traffic Resources on the Internet
Psychological Principles
Self witnessing Exercise
Index of Driving and Drivers
Dr. Driving"s Selection of Traffic Safety Issues

Introduction

Summaries of Dr. Driving's Page:

1. Inner power at the Wheel

The fisrt item that you can click on on Dr. Driving's page is called Inner Power at the Wheel. This site summarizes the book Inner Power at the Wheel written by Dr.'s Leon James and Diane Nahl. The book is comprosed of fourteen chapters which deal with a range of topics from Car Talk to Driving Personality Make-Over. Out of the fourteen chapters, there are four choapters that are available to you on line, and you can access them by simply clicking on the appropriate title. The chapters that are available are six, twelve, fourteen, and This page allows it's viewers to have a peek of what trafficpsychology is. By reading the chapters, you will find that it is possible to change your driving habits and rid yourself of road rage. For example, in chapter fourteen, Dr. James writes about the things that he said while driving, and he analyzes his actions. He does this by keeping arecorder on for the whole time that he is on the road, and later reviews what he said and tries to mnake adjustments accirdingly. This activity of recording not inly is to see what it is that you are saying, but also what it is that you wre thinking at the time. This is the beginning of a driving make-over.

2. Interview with Dr. Driving on Road Rage

The second item on the menu is Media Interviews with Dr. Driving . This page gives simple answers to frequently asked questions such as "Why are people so aggressive to one another?" and it also gives some answers to some situations which make peole upset like what to do while people tailgate other people. This page helps you to become more aware of the problems that upset people day by day, and it also goves useful information as to how to solve these dilemmas. This also briefly explains Dr. Driving's Three Step Program. This will be explained next in the summaries.

3. Three Step Program for a Healthier, More Zestful Traffic Life

This page page informs people about the Three step Program which may also be referred to as the AWM method. The A represents Awareness, emotional control, and Altruism. With this forst step, one should hope to accomplish an awareness of how one expresses road rage, anger and misjudment while driving. The second step, Wstands for knowledge, judgment, and Wisdom. At the completion of step number two, one should hopethat they have gained the knowledge of their actions while driving, and with this knowledge,, they were able to use their minds and come to a conclusion that their actions were either right or wrong morally. This is where the wisdom comes into play. One should hope that they use right judment in deciding what is morally right and wrong while driving. Lastly, there is M. This symbolizes alertness, calmness, and kindmess. At the end of this stage, one should hope that they are now fully aware of how they expresstheir road, rage, have learned from the acquiredinformation, and now am able to come out of a sticky situation feeling calm, and relaxed as a pose to tense and resentful. At the completion of reading this page, I have come to understand that there is a systematic way in which I can rid myself of road rage. For a majority of the time, I do not even take notice that I am being hostile towards other drivers while on the road whether i am in the driver's seat, or riding as a passenger. I am now stuck in the Awareness stage, and feel that I will be so for a long period of time.

4. Dr. Driving Says...Problems and Solutions

The fourth item on the menu list is Problems and Solutions. This page is similaar to the Media Interview page, but it is now in more n depth solutions. This page focuses on two major problems that I feel irritate a majority of the drivers on the road: when people get cut off, and when people are being tailgated. Dr. Driving gives advice on how to deal withthese common everyday prblems. For example, Dr. Driving suggests that when someone cuts you off, don't take it as a personal vendetta against you and the passengers in your car, but in a less personal form. For instance, instead of thinking "That @!?!!!! He cut me off!! What a jerk!" you can think to yourself,"The driver needed to get in and couldn't do it another way." See the difference? This implies that I should look at situations in a different light. Once again, I don't feel that this will help me to modify my driving technique because even after reading this page, the first thing that comes to my mind when someone cuts me off is, "You **@$#" although I know that Dr. Driving says that I shouldn't bedoing that.

5. Introductory Statement about Dr. Driving Says...

Item number five is an introduction about what a driving personality make-over consists of. For instance, first you need to determine that you do suffer from road rage. To do this, there are a lsit of questions to ponder about. Here is an example of what type of questions there are: Are you an impatient driver? Do you feel the ned for speed? This page also have lnks where you can click on to get to the pages that can help ou instantly withstarting on your make-over.

6. About the Authors: Leon James and Diane Nahl

Sixth is an introduction to the authors of Inner Power at the Wheel. The authors are Dr.'s Leon James and Diane Nahl. They are a husband/wife team who take on the challenge of tackling tohe problems with drivers today. This lists all of their accomplishments, and keeps you up to date on the things that they are currently engaged in.

7. Chart of the Nine Zones

The seventh item is a Chart of the Nine Zones. This menu item is a "how-to" for a driving make-over. According to Dr. Drivingh, the moke-over plan can be "summarized as an endless cycle of three's." The first step is commitment. This entails commintting to yourself to a life long peaceful reltaionship between you and other drivers on the road. Next, is self-witnessing exercises. With step number two, you are responsible for being aware of all of yourthoughts, feelings, and actions while driving. Lastly is the application of the self-modification techniques. What this step means is that now after completing step two, you are now fully aware of all of your thoughts feelings and actions, therefore, you must now adjust all of your "bad" driving habits to become a more considerate, patient driver. For example, if you have a habit of always cussing pwople out when they cut you off or tailgate you, the next time this happens, you need to consciously and constantly tell yourself that is is immoral to do such things, and try and figure out a positive reason for the other drivers' actions. Onethoughts, feelings, and actions while driving. Lastly is the application of the self-modification techniques. What this step means is that now after completing step two, you are now fully aware of all of your thoughts feelings and actions, therefore, you must now adjust all of your "bad" driving habits to become a more considerate, patient driver. For example, if you have a habit of always cussing pwople out when they cut you off or tailgate you, the next time this happens, you need to consciously and constantly tell yourself that is is immoral to do such things, and try and figure out a positive reason for the other drivers' actions. Onepossibility may be that the other driver needs to use the bathroom really bad, and therefore will do anything to get to a toilet. Wouldn't you go to such extreme measures if you were in that same situation? The chart of the nine zones assists you in making your driving make-over a success. This chart involves your feelings, thoughts, and actions. Dr. Driving calls the act of following his nine zones "internalization." This means that the farther you get down the chart, the more personalozed it becomes. You are eventually forced to look at yourself and your actions. This chart is brokenup into three phases: safety issues, self control issues, and social responsibility issues. Each phase also has three zones within them. Safety issues include such topics as knowledge of authority, respect for rules, regulations, and authorities. This relates to traffic psychology because one may be saying derogatory things unconsciously, and by making a conscious effort to realize how a person reacts in certain situations, he/she may become aware of their possible Jeckle/Hyde complex. It can also aid in keeping records of what upsets the individual, and he/she can easily remedy the problem. This tells me that I should become aware of what it is exactly that gets me upset while driving. I should pay more attention, and think before I act instead of acting on impulse.

8. Comments by Visitors

This menu item is a collection of different comments by different visitors who have read Dr. Driving's page. The comments are mostly positive ones. It is interesting to see how many other people read Dr. Driving's page, and they are all from a variety of places.

9. Driving and Traffic Resources on the Internet

The ninth menu item is actually Chapter 12 from Inner Power at the Wheel by Dr.'s Nahl and James. This menu item explains and provides links to other topics related to traffic psychology. For example, there is a link connecting the visitor to a link called the National Sooed Limit Debate. This site helps to alert drivers of a lot of the hiding places for police men, so that there is a reduction in the number of traffic tickets given out. There aremany more interesting links avialable on this page.

10. Psychological Principles to Help Us Be Rational and Humane Drivers

This page is a list of 18 suggestions from Dr. Driving to help an individual become more humane drivers. A lot of the driving suggestions were common sense, but majority of the epople don't think so rationally while behind the wheel. I feel that seeing the suggestions on the oage helps people to internalize therecommendations.

11. Self Witnessing Exercise

This page was made so that people will be able to analyze their driving habits. It makes people think to themselves as to why they get upset at a certain thing, and if they do not want to change, why not? This relates to traffic psychology because it makes people realizewhat they are doing when they are driving. It is the first step to achieving a complete driving make-over. The implication of this page is that I should try the self witnessing exercise and see where I need working on.

12. Index to Topics on Driving

This page gives readers an easier time in locating other driver related topics with links. All a person needs to do is click on the site that he/she wishes to visit.

13. Dr. Driving's Selection of Traffic Safety Issues

This page lists e-mail messages from newsgroups, and people can respond to these messeges.