Unsafe Habits Behind the Wheel and the Social Pressure Gap
Most drivers understand road safety rules, yet many slip from their own principles. This contradiction has been highlighted by researchers from the American Road Safety Foundation AAA, who examined how people behave when no one is watching and when social norms are clear about danger.
Survey results show a striking gap between what drivers say and what they do. For instance, 92 percent described texting while driving as a dangerous or extremely dangerous activity, and 96 percent believed that someone in authority would disapprove if they knew about such behavior. Despite these beliefs, a quarter of respondents admitted to texting or chatting at least once in the 30 days before the survey period.
The same pattern appeared with aggressive driving. A large majority, 88 percent, labeled aggression on the road as very or extremely dangerous, and 96 percent felt acquaintances would disapprove of this conduct. Yet 23 percent admitted behaving aggressively at least once during the previous month.
Common violations drivers allow themselves
The most frequent behaviors cited were:
- exceeding the highway speed limit by 25 km/h or more (50.7%)
- using a mobile device to talk while driving (37.4%)
- driving while reading text or emails on a mobile screen (36.2%)
Additionally, 28.2 percent acknowledged deliberately running a red light at least once.
Almost one in five drivers, 18.8 percent, reported driving in the past 30 days while feeling so fatigued that they felt depressed. About 7.3 percent admitted to being intoxicated to the point of losing driving privileges, and 5 percent confessed to using sedatives before getting behind the wheel.
Conclusion
Even with this evident mismatch between belief and behavior, experts argue that social pressure plays a significant role in risky driving decisions. When a behavior is widely viewed as dangerous and unsafe by the majority, people are less inclined to engage in it. The troubling part is that the likelihood of being caught or fined, or losing a license, appears to have little lasting impact on many drivers’ choices.
Source: Autoblog
Image credit: Depositphotos
Vote – win Lada!
Readers are invited to participate in the Behind the Wheel Grand Prix vote to help identify the hottest car novelties of the year. As a token of appreciation for participating, three ferrets will be raffled among voters who complete the questionnaire by the end of February 2023.