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Self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during COVID-19

Aggressive driving is a significant road safety problem and is likely to get worse as the situations that provoke aggression become more prevalent in the road network (e.g. as traffic volumes and density increase and the grey fleet expands). In addition, driver frustration and stress, also recognise...

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Autores principales: Stephens, Amanda N., Trawley, Steven, Ispanovic, Justin, Lowrie, Sophie
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2022
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9342743/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35914007
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0272422
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author Stephens, Amanda N.
Trawley, Steven
Ispanovic, Justin
Lowrie, Sophie
author_facet Stephens, Amanda N.
Trawley, Steven
Ispanovic, Justin
Lowrie, Sophie
author_sort Stephens, Amanda N.
collection PubMed
description Aggressive driving is a significant road safety problem and is likely to get worse as the situations that provoke aggression become more prevalent in the road network (e.g. as traffic volumes and density increase and the grey fleet expands). In addition, driver frustration and stress, also recognised as triggers for aggression, are likely to stay high because of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated burdens, leading to increased aggression. However, although drivers report that other drivers are becoming more aggressive, self-report data suggests that the prevalence of aggression has not changed over time. This may be due to the methods used to define and measure aggression. This study sought to clarify whether self-reported aggression has increased over a five-year period and across three different types of aggression: verbal aggression, aggressive use of the vehicle and personal physical aggression. The influence of COVID-19 lockdowns on own and others’ driving styles was also investigated. A total of 774 drivers (males = 66.5%, mean age = 48.7; SD = 13.9) who had been licensed for at least five years (M = 30.6, SD = 14.3), responded to an online survey and provided retrospective frequencies for their current aggression (considered pre-COVID-19 lockdowns) and five years prior. Two open ended questions were included to understand perceived changes in driving styles (own and others) during the COVID-19 pandemic. One third (33%) of drivers believed they were more aggressive now than five years ago but 61% of the sample believed other drivers were more aggressive now than five years ago. Logistic regression analyses on changes in self-reported aggression (same or decreased vs increased) showed the main factor associated with increases in aggressive driving was the perception that other drivers’ aggression had increased. Further, almost half the sample (47%) reported that other drivers had become riskier and more dangerous during, and soon after, the COVID-19 lockdowns. These results show that the driving environment is seen as becoming more aggressive, both gradually and as a direct result of COVID-19 lockdowns. The data indicate that this perceived increase in aggression is likely to provoke higher levels of aggression in some drivers. Campaigns to reduce aggression on the roads need to focus on changing road culture and improving interactions, or perceived interactions, among road users.
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spelling pubmed-93427432022-08-02 Self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during COVID-19 Stephens, Amanda N. Trawley, Steven Ispanovic, Justin Lowrie, Sophie PLoS One Research Article Aggressive driving is a significant road safety problem and is likely to get worse as the situations that provoke aggression become more prevalent in the road network (e.g. as traffic volumes and density increase and the grey fleet expands). In addition, driver frustration and stress, also recognised as triggers for aggression, are likely to stay high because of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated burdens, leading to increased aggression. However, although drivers report that other drivers are becoming more aggressive, self-report data suggests that the prevalence of aggression has not changed over time. This may be due to the methods used to define and measure aggression. This study sought to clarify whether self-reported aggression has increased over a five-year period and across three different types of aggression: verbal aggression, aggressive use of the vehicle and personal physical aggression. The influence of COVID-19 lockdowns on own and others’ driving styles was also investigated. A total of 774 drivers (males = 66.5%, mean age = 48.7; SD = 13.9) who had been licensed for at least five years (M = 30.6, SD = 14.3), responded to an online survey and provided retrospective frequencies for their current aggression (considered pre-COVID-19 lockdowns) and five years prior. Two open ended questions were included to understand perceived changes in driving styles (own and others) during the COVID-19 pandemic. One third (33%) of drivers believed they were more aggressive now than five years ago but 61% of the sample believed other drivers were more aggressive now than five years ago. Logistic regression analyses on changes in self-reported aggression (same or decreased vs increased) showed the main factor associated with increases in aggressive driving was the perception that other drivers’ aggression had increased. Further, almost half the sample (47%) reported that other drivers had become riskier and more dangerous during, and soon after, the COVID-19 lockdowns. These results show that the driving environment is seen as becoming more aggressive, both gradually and as a direct result of COVID-19 lockdowns. The data indicate that this perceived increase in aggression is likely to provoke higher levels of aggression in some drivers. Campaigns to reduce aggression on the roads need to focus on changing road culture and improving interactions, or perceived interactions, among road users. Public Library of Science 2022-08-01 /pmc/articles/PMC9342743/ /pubmed/35914007 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0272422 Text en © 2022 Stephens et al https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Stephens, Amanda N.
Trawley, Steven
Ispanovic, Justin
Lowrie, Sophie
Self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during COVID-19
title Self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during COVID-19
title_full Self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during COVID-19
title_fullStr Self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during COVID-19
title_full_unstemmed Self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during COVID-19
title_short Self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during COVID-19
title_sort self-reported changes in aggressive driving within the past five years, and during covid-19
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9342743/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35914007
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0272422
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