The Effectiveness of Pre-Driver Training

Transcription

1 67 th ROAD SAFETY CONGRESS 4 th 6 th MARCH 2002 Safer Driving The Road to Success The Effectiveness of Pre-Driver Training Dr Bill Carcary Tayside Police

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3 NEW DRIVER PROJECT Dr. Bill Carcary Tayside Police INTRODUCTION Almost half of the new drivers who obtain a full driving licence in the United Kingdom begin learning to drive at the age of 17. Drivers in the age group 17 to 21 years hold approximately 10% of licences, have a lower than average mileage, but are however involved in over 20% of all accidents, with most of these accidents occurring in the first year post-test. In addition, even after controlling for mileage driven, it appears that young male drivers are nearly twice as likely to be involved in a driving accident during this period, than females. However, new driver accident liability reduces by 30% during the first year of driving but it is not clear which aspects of experience gained are instrumental in bringing about this reduction. Moreover, while there is some activity by road safety professionals in pre-driver training courses very little is known about how effective these may be in bringing about the desired reduction in new driver accident involvement. The main aim of New Driver Project, funded by the Scottish Road Safety Campaign, was to establish whether or not classroom-based intervention strategies could be effective in addressing the problems described above. BACKGROUND INFORMATION In reviewing the literature on new drivers, young drivers or novice risk, three major methodological difficulties arise. First, there are wide variations in the definitions of the young driver. For example, some studies have included all drivers between 16 and 25 years of age, other studies have restricted the definition to or years. Second, in studies that have highlighted differences in driving behaviour between young drivers versus older drivers, any significant results that arise may only reflect differences in driving experience rather than something intrinsic to youthfulness. However, given that age and experience are inextricably compounded for the most part, attempts to separate those two concepts may well prove fruitless. Third, there has been great variation in the methodological approaches that have been used to study driver risk taking. These approaches have ranged from self-reports, interviews, questionnaires, video displays, driving simulators and roadside observation. Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 1 of 8

4 This diversity in methodological approaches and variations in the operational definitions of risk may also have contributed to some of the contradictory results in this area of research. A review of the literature of previous studies into young driver behaviour did reveal some gains have been made. Some researchers have reported a consistent and robust connection between speeding behaviour and accident involvement. For example, a study by West, Elander and French, (1993) suggested that there is a consistent relationship between self-reported faster driving and increased accident risk. The West et al., (1993) study also concluded that self-reports of speeding behaviour could be used as a successful surrogate for direct observations of speeding behaviour and that both self-reported and observed speeding behaviour are significantly associated with self-reported accident involvement. The West study also concluded that a faster driving style is associated with being male, being young and belonging to lower socioeconomic groups. Furthermore, West and colleagues also argue that the association between demographic factors and accident risk are mediated by these variables. In addition to these findings, Manstead et al., (1992) suggest that speeding may be the most prevalent of all driving violations. Moreover, research by Brown and Copeman, (1975), revealed that the respondents in their study suggested that speeding was seen to be the least serious in a series of traffic offences listed. This finding again emerged in a study by Reason et al., (1990). Research by Parker et al., (1992), also argues that for some, speeding is regarded with a degree of tolerance. It is also known that the most common cause of road traffic accidents is the inappropriate use of speed. It therefore seemed appropriate for the series of studies used for the New Driver Project to focus on attitudes toward speeding behaviours in particular and attitudes to driving violations in general, as the main behavioural items for the study to review. METHODOLOGY A sample of 451 new drivers was drawn from across Scotland. Each new driver in the study was between the ages of 17 and 21, held a provisional driving licence and had obtained less than two hours of professional driving instruction. The new drivers were randomly allocated to one of three groups. The new drivers allocated to Group 1 were used for comparison purposes and were left to acquire their driving licence in the manner that was most suitable for them. Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 2 of 8

5 The new drivers in Groups 2 and 3 also acquired their driving licences in a like manner but in addition they were required to attend a classroom-based pre-driver training or a post-driving test training intervention respectively. The pre-driver training intervention for subjects in Group 2 was conducted as soon as possible after the start of their driver training and the post-driver training for subjects in Group 3 was given within three months of the date the subject passed his or her driving test. (The design of the study is represented in Table 1.) The research design allowed for four cross-sectional studies to be undertaken. By linking the same measures from two or more of these studies a longitudinal element could also be introduced to allow for analysis of what changes may be taking place over time. The four individual studies were conducted using questionnaire sets that were issued as the subjects started learning to drive, immediately on passing the practical driving test, three months post-test and nine months post-test. Table 1. Schematic representation of study design. Subjects entered the study at Time 1 and progressed left to right to Time 4. Time 1 Q aire A Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 Time 1 April 1997 Learning to drive period. Pre-driver education intervention. Time 2 Q aire B On driving test pass 3 month driving period. Time 3 Q aire C Test pass plus 3 months 6 Month driving period Time 4 Q aire D Test pass plus nine months Post-driving test intervention Time 2 Time 3 Time 4 March 2000 PRE-DRIVER EDUCATION INTERVENTION The subjects in Group 2 had the same questionnaire schedule as Group 1. In addition they were formed into groups ranging in size from approximately 12 to 25 to undertake one afternoon of classroom work involving a standardised pre-driver training programme. Interviews were conducted with road safety practitioners throughout Scotland and a programme content agreed. What emerged through this consultation process was a consensus of opinion that suggested that the most constructive way Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 3 of 8

6 forward in addressing the accident problems of the new driver was through better predriver education. Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 4 of 8

7 Examples of the topics covered in the pre-driver education programme are: - Motor Insurance - Vehicle maintenance - Social issues - Highway Code - Roadcraft - Post accident procedures - Drink / drugs / fatigue - Attitudes, pressures and social standards POST-DRIVING TEST INTERVENTION The subjects in Group 3 also had the same questionnaire schedule as Groups 1 and 2. The subjects in this Group were again formed into smaller groups of approximately 12 to 25, as they passed their driving test, to undertake one afternoon of classroom work but this time in relation to aspects of: - Personal Vulnerability. Raising personal vulnerability in the driving task by exploring how vulnerable new drivers are to accident involvement. - Risk perception. How new drivers may underestimate driving risks. - An exploration of the new personal beliefs that result from becoming a new driver and how these beliefs relate to the expectations of others including a discussion on commonly held false beliefs about driving, including unrealistic optimism, additional motives while in the car and choosing to violate road traffic laws. - Subjective social norms. What society and significant others expect from their driving behaviour. - Perceived behaviour control. That speeding and the risk-taking are personal choices. - Peer pressures. How peer pressure manifests itself in relation to driving. Discussions on how to deal effectively with peer pressure and how the ultimate responsibility for safety and risk-taking inevitably lies with the driver. RESULTS Main findings: As new drivers start learning to drive their attitudes, beliefs and intentions towards the driving task already appear to be formed. New male learner drivers indicated that they were less likely to abide by the legal and social conventions of driving with regard to speeding behaviour. Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 5 of 8

8 New male learner drivers also reported that they were less likely to take cognisance of what their parents, close friends or friends of the opposite sex thought about their driving. The results of a classroom-based pre-driver training intervention revealed that subjects who attended for this type of training did not score significantly higher on a driving knowledge test in comparison with those who did not. The results obtained from the second study at Time 2 did not provide evidence in support of classroom-based pre-driver education. Differences were found between those who attended a classroom-based posttest driver training intervention and those who did not on a measure of driving safety motives and a measure of perceived driving skill indicating a positive intervention effect. Figure 1 shows the mean scores from the subjects in each group on a measure of self-perceived driving skill recorded at both Time 2 (study two, on test pass) and Time 3 (study three at three months post-test). The lower score at Time 3 from those subjects in post-test intervention group indicates that these new drivers perceive their driving skills to be less well developed. Figure Mean scores Time 2 Time 3 Test pass to three months post test Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 At nine months post driving test, no overall differences were found between the pre-driving test intervention subjects, the post-driving test intervention subjects and those who were left to acquire their driving licence in the standard way with regard to their attitudes towards driving violations or other additional motives involved in the driving task. However, the subjects in Group 3 did report better behavioural intentions towards speeding in the last study at Time 4. Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 6 of 8

9 DISCUSSION It is important to note that the information and results drawn in the present series of studies were by self-reports. While there is evidence to suggest that self-report measures of driving behaviour and actual driving behaviour are closely correlated it is important to note that self-reported driving behaviour and actual driving behaviour may not be one and the same thing. The results from the first study at Time 1 revealed that the subjects, at the time when they started learning to drive, appeared to have their attitudes, beliefs and intentions towards the driving task already formed. Related to this is another finding in the study that also suggests that new male learner drivers are less likely to abide by the legal and social conventions with regard to speeding and, in addition, that they are less likely than females to take cognisance of what their parents, close friends or friends of the opposite sex would think about their driving. If it is the case that driving pre-dispositions are formed some time before actual learning to drive takes place then this aspect is of importance and may have bearing on how future interventions are constructed. The results from the second cross-sectional study, at Time 2, revealed no support for the pre-driver education course used. This was in line with outcomes from previous studies conducted in America and Canada. For example McKnight, (1985), suggests that strategically based education or information with regard to driving techniques is wasted upon novice drivers as they do not yet have the skills to deploy tactical styles of driving. In contrast to this the results from the third study at Time 3 provided positive evidence with regard to effects of the post-driver intervention, with differences between the groups being found on measures of driver safety motive and perceived driving skill. This is an encouraging finding. Linked to this finding is previous American research by Fitts and Posner, (1967), that suggests learning to drive has three phases that range from the basic acquisition of skills required to control the vehicle through to driving becoming a cognitively automatic process. They also argue that the driving test is successfully passed before many of the required skills reach the automatic stage. The findings from the study at Time 3 do suggest that at least the driver s self-reported behaviour can be changed by a postdriving test intervention, and more interestingly, these changes may be measurable at three months post-test. Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 7 of 8

10 This again may be an important finding as at this point in their driving careers where new drivers are at their most vulnerable and, at the same time, they may still be behaviourally receptive to modifying information with regard to their perceived driving skills or style. The results for the study at Time 4 also suggest the subjects in Group 3 are more likely than subjects from the other two groups to conform to speed limit regulations. Or, at least have better self-reported behavioural intentions towards speeding. However, changes in self-reported behaviour over time were also measured using West and Hall s (1994) Attitude to Driving Violation Scale as well as a measure of additional motives. Both these measures were used at Times 1, 2 and 4. The mean scores for all groups in the study rose gradually and significantly over time without either intervention apparently having any effect on these two particular aspects of self-reported driving behaviour. This is a disappointing finding from a road safety perspective. REFERENCES Brown, I.D., Copeman, A.K., (1975), Drivers' attitudes to the seriousness of traffic offences in relation to the design of sanctions, Accident Analysis and Prevention, 7, Fitts, P.M. and Posner, M.I., (1967), Human Performance, Belmont, CA, Brooks/Cole. Manstead, A.S.R., Parker, D., Stradling, S.G., Reason, J.T., and Baxter, J.S., (1992), Perceived consensus in estimates of the prevalence of driving errors and violations, Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 22, 7, McKnight, J., (1985), Driver education - when? In: Young driver accidents: in search of solutions, (eds) D.R. Mayhew, H.M. Simpson and A.C. Donelson, Traffic Injury Research Foundation of Canada. Parker, D., Manstead, A.S.R., Stradling, S.G., Reason, J.T. and Baxter, J., (1992), Intention to commit driving violations: an application of the theory of planned behaviour, Journal Of Applied Psychology, 77, 1, Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 8 of 8

11 Reason, J.T., Manstead, A.S.R., Stradling, S.G., Baxter, J.S. and Campbell, K., (1990), Errors and violations on the road: a real distinction? Ergonomics, 33, West R, Elander J, and French D., (1993), Mild Social Deviance, Type-A behaviour pattern and decision-making style as correlates of individual accident risk. (Contractor Report No. 309). Transport Research Laboratory, Crowthorne, Berkshire. West, R. and Hall, L., (1994), The accident liability of novice drivers, Report to the Department of Transport, England. Road Safety Congress 2002 Page 9 of 8