As you’re driving along the side road or highway, you see a set of headlights come up on you rather fast. Suddenly, you look in your rearview mirror and see a huge truck right up against your trunk as you’re driving 50 mph. What should you do? Slow down, speed up, and pull over? As you look, you see the driver getting progressively annoyed. Suddenly the driver shoots out beside your car, lays on the horn, and flips you the bird. “Outrageous!!” You think to yourself.
How many times have we experienced this? Probably once in our lives we have encountered a nasty or annoyed driver on the road. When asked what poses the biggest threat on the road today, 32 percent responded with aggressive drivers being the biggest. (AAA). One in seven stated that
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they have felt threatened by other aggressive drivers weekly. (AAA). With all of the traffic on the road today it’s not uncommon to encounter traffic jams as well as numerous construction sites having us merge here and there, resulting in a single lane of traffic, and with inconsiderate drivers not letting others merge in, it’s no wonder there are so many aggressive drivers. Road rage isn’t something new. It’s a behavior many have experienced. The problem is, it’s a cause for many accidents on the roads today. With so many studies, and bringing awareness to the issue, we can determine what road rage is, the psychology behind it, and how it can be prevented to decrease the amount of fatalities resulting from poor choices behind the wheel. The term for road rage is widely used as a “loss of control while behind the wheel”.
A term that emerged around the 1990’s and is used to describe dangerous on-the-road behaviors, acts of aggression, violent behavior by a driver of an automobile, which causes accidents or incidents on roadways (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration). Between 2003 and 2007, 56% of deadly vehicle crashes are a result of aggressive driving. …show more content…
(AAA) The more extreme cases of road rage are classified as a situation where a driver or passenger attempts to intimidate or injure another driver or passenger or to damage their vehicle in a traffic accident (Asbridge, Smart and Mann, 2006, p.109). Common types of rage on the road could be tailgating where the driver drives too close upon a car ahead, causing an increase in the possibility of a rear end accident. Also, braking, speeding up when passing, yelling, finger gestures, and honking, to extreme violence where a gun has been shown to the opposite driver. It has been questioned what could be the possible cause for this type of behavior? There are many reasons thought to cause road rage in individuals. According to an article online written by Keith Londrie and street journal, it’s said some reasons one may experience this type of behavior are due to stress and fatigue (Street journal). Stress causes a multitude of reactions in a person. It can be caused from work, kids, home life, and money (webmd). Fatigue also plays a huge role as well. We can be so unaware of this when driving and that effect on our driving skills can trigger negative reactions (DMV.org). Both of these combined can carry over to reasons why aggression can happen so suddenly behind the wheel. Other bigger factors have a name, and researchers believe it could be caused by a mental illness called IED, or intermittent explosive disorder (WEBMD). This type of behavior experienced by the individual includes uncontrolled outbursts, throwing objects, and breaking objects in a fit of rage. This seems to be an uncommon disorder, but it has been studied by Emil Coccaro, a professor and psychiatrist at the University of Chicago. Studies also show that some people and their personalities are aggressive by nature (webmd). Research shows abnormal activity of the neurotransmitter serotonin in parts of the brain that play a role in regulating, even inhibiting aggressive behavior. (Harvard Health Publications) Is there treatment for this disorder? There’s no one treatment that's best for everyone with IED. Treatment generally includes talk therapy (psychotherapy) and medication. (Mayo Clinic) Stereotypes: Does road rage affect a certain group of individuals such as gender, age, or demographics?
In theory, this suggests that young men are more aggressive behind the wheel, and more risk takers over female drivers. On the other hand, well-mannered individuals who typically are passive, and wouldn’t think of acting aggressive behind the wheel have been known to do so. (AAA). In addition, some people are just more prone to arousal. How they demonstrate frustration and anger depends on gender, culture, and circumstances. Not everyone who feels frustration and anger lashes out behind the wheel and at other road users. It is known that insurance companies have higher rates for young male drivers over female drivers. According to a statistic from 2012, 71% of all car-related accidents were male drivers. (AAA foundation for traffic
safety). Some contributing factors of driver related aggression behind the wheel that puts others at risk on the road could be improper lane changes, failure to yield the right of way, failure to obey traffic signs and observe safety signs, improper and aggressive following, failure to signal, making improper turns, improper passing with restricted visibility, distance. Statistics from these careless driving habits have devastating effects. Data from 2003-2007 have shown a total of 192,069 fatal crashes in the United States with deaths resulting in 212,997 people, with excessive speed showing the greatest factor resulting from this data (Foundation for Traffic Safety). Solutions to aggressive driving are simple. For the most part, stress can be prevented when commuting. Give yourself enough time and plan your time accordingly. When time is a factor in commuting, which leads to stressing over arriving on time for that appointment or for work, plan on leaving early. If you add 10-15 minutes to your expected destination, stress is diminished. Extra time means a calmer commute. Second, get enough sleep. A huge contributing factor to road rage is a lack of sleep, which leads to cranky drivers. It’s recommended to give yourself at least 8 hours of sleep a night (National Sleep Foundation). Other ways to improve your mood while driving that is recommended are listening to relaxing music or an audio book. It is said to be a stress reliever and to drown out stressful traffic noise. All in all, just breathe. If you notice yourself clenching the wheel, take a deep breath and try to relax. Realize that you, as a person, are not the target. Perhaps the other driver simply made a mistake. The other person could possibly be dealing with crying children, pets, or who knows, possibly a bee. The point is, try not to take it personally and realize we all make errors from time to time (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration). We often wonder, am I aggressive behind the wheel? Do I tend to snap at that driver ahead of me taking a little longer to react to a green light, shouting “Go lady!”. Many classes are available and bring to light the possibility of ourselves being aggressive on the road, which contributes to the increased possibility of accidents. Such classes involve taping yourself while driving. Hearing your own voice rant on audio is enough of a wakeup call to realize and help reduce negative behavior on the road. Analyzing your driving skills such as: Do I tailgate others if they are going slower than I? Do I exceed the speed limit to get to my destination on time? Do I honk my horn to get the other driver to pay attention? Do I weave in and out of traffic? Any answer of yes may just be qualified as a potentially aggressive driver. The AIPS or American Institute for Public Safety has such online tests to analyze your own driving skills, bad habits to help improve your overall attitude while on the road. The majority of drivers on the road today have experienced some sort of incident weather it was from themselves, or others. Often times, its minor but we don’t want to take that risk of it becoming serious and potentially deadly. Research itself is still a work in progress, but certain factors are prevalent. The biggest factors seem to be directed to age. Young men, who tend to be the biggest risk takers on the road, are more prone to aggression which leads to risky driving behavior. The other big contributing factor is stress. Stress from home, work and the environment play a big role in our overall moods from day to day. Environmental stressors make driving an extremely stressful task. As we are more aware of others on the road, the fact we have to share the road with everybody else, it’s important to address the problems. Knowing our stressors, and dealing with them by allotting yourself enough time for travel, is important to put into practice. The chaos is always going to be out there. There are always roads needing repair, people making mistakes, and others being disrespectful. It’s important to stay focused out there to ensure the safety for everyone around us. I wanted to learn more about the reasons behind so many aggressive drivers, as I have first-hand experienced this type of behavior in a relative. It’s hard for me to understand why a person is such a bully on the road, but so nice elsewhere. Where does this behavior come from, and why is it just when a person like this is driving. I am interested to know if there are any solutions to curb this behavior, and keep from having our children witness the aggression. In their eyes, seeing their parent or parents act this way could potentially pass down this negativity to our kids. Works Cited Conkle, Ann and West, Catherine. “Psychology on the Road.” Association for Psychological Science 8 July 2008. Web Mayo Clinic. “Intermittent Explosive Disorder.” www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/intermittent-explosive-disorder/basics/treatment/con-2002430925. Accessed 11 Aug. 2016. Web WebMd. “Causes of Stress.” http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/causes-of-stress. Accessed 11 Aug 2016. Web National Highway Traffic Safety Administration “Contributing Factors to Aggressive Driving.” Report date 1 March 2004. Web Harvard Health Publications. “Treating Intermittent Explosive Disorder.” April 2011. Web National Sleep Foundation. “How Much Sleep Do We Really Need?” https://sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/how-much-sleep-do-we-really-need Accessed 10 August 2016. Web AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. “Aggressive Driving.” https://www.aaafoundation.org/aggressive-driving. Accessed 10 Aug 2016. Web Londrie, Keith. “Road Rage Causes and Prevention.” http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/52802/car_accidents/road_rage___causes_and_prevention Accessed 10 Aug 2016. Web Asbridge, M., Smart, and Mann. “Can We Prevent Road Rage?” Trauma, violence and Abuse. 2006. Book.
First, men are considered to be more reckless than women. Men are statistically more violent, most likely to become alcoholics or substance abusers. Some people might say that women can be just as violent and hooked on alcohol or a substance, as men this may appear reasonable: however, the article states that
Aggressive driving can also result from drunk or drug driving and distracted driving. It is hence densely woven into multiple road dangers.
I. Introduction A. Should 16 year old teenagers be able to drive? B. “Those who favor raising the driving age say that statistics show teenagers are more likely to get into accidents than adults. What they don't say is that statistics also show that men of all ages are 77 percent more likely to kill someone while driving than women.
According to national teen driving statistics, 16-year-olds, in particular, are 3 (three) times more likely to die in a crash than the average of all drivers, and they have higher crash rates than any other age group. In 2008; 81% of teenage crash deaths were passenger vehicle occupants, 31% of teenage drivers killed had been drinking alcohol, 55% were not buckled up, and 37% of male teenage drivers involved in fatalities were speeding. Teenagers who drink and drive have a greater risk of serious crashes than older drivers with equal blood alcohol concentrations. Teens do not wear seat/safety belts as much as adults. Teens tend to take more risks due to overconfidence in their abilities. These risks include: speeding, tailgating (driving too close to the vehicle in front), running red lights, violating traffic signals and signs, illegal turns, dangerous passing, and failure to yield to pedestrians.
Dangers on roadways is an issue that describes the discrepancy between perception and reality of road rage. The media, for some odd reason, tends to make road rage a huge controversial issue. As seen on talk shows from Oprah Winfrey to CNN, they reveal to people that road rage could happen at any time and to always be looking over your shoulder. These talk shows and news programs also put fear into our minds by explaining that most roadragers often use guns to kill or injure their victims. Glassner contradicts the media's speculations by stating that out of approximately 250,000 people killed on roadways between 1990-1997, AAA attributed that one in one thousand was an act of road rage (pg.5).
In the movie “crash” people from different racial group crash in to each other and at least two of the characters come to recognize how their prejudice and stereotyping is based on their accidental encounter with members of other social groups.
In order to prove themselves, men usually attempt unhealthy and destructive acts to perform their courage and fearlessness, but these actions are prone to suicidal and various other types of out of control or untouchable behaviors. Michael Kimmel states, “Men ages nineteen to twenty-nine are three times less likely to wear seat belts than women the same age”(Kimmel 468). Mr Kimmel quoted data to claim that young men assume safe driving as emasculation. As long as men are driving a car, using a seatbelt means that they are afraid of injury or death. Besides those, it also represents that this man cannot completely control his car; on the other hand, he is not masculine.
The movie Crash was directed by Paul Haggis is a powerful film that displays how race is still a sociological problem that affects one 's life. It also focuses on how we should not stereotype people based on their color because one may come out wrong in the end. Stereotyping is a major issue that is still happening in today 's society and seems to only be getting worse. This movie is a great way to see the daily life and struggle of other races and see how racism can happen to anyone, not just African Americans which seems to only be seen in the news and such.
Endersby -. Its not a question if teenagers are worse drivers than more responsible adults. According to a few researchers, a study in the 1990’s said crash-related deaths from sixteen and seventeen year olds were eighteen per 100,000 in New Jersey, and twenty-six per 100,000 in Connecticut. More than 5,000 teens in the U.S. die every year in car crashes. The National Highway Safety Administration said that the rate of crashes per mile driven for beginner drivers was almost ten times the rate of drivers thirty to fifty-nine.
A 1996 Ford Mustang next to my car revs the engine and my mind loses interest in the squirrel and moves to the cars next to and opposite of me. There are two cars, a BMW and an old pickup truck; the name is not visible. You can see the eagerness of each car; the impatience in these cars is more than of child the day before their birthday. These cars remain perpendicular to the lanes but are moving freely to their destination and seem to be mocking the stationary cars at the red light. The BMW reacts by slowly creeping up as close to the edge of the intersection as possible.
This means that the drivers are essentially driving around on the road blindly (“What” 1). Texting while driving causes 1,600,000 accidents per year, 333,000 injuries per year, and 11 teen deaths every day (“DWI” 1). Driving while intoxicated seems like the most significant cause of accidents, while on the road, however, texting while driving is much more hazardous. Texting while driving is about 6 times more likely to cause an accident than driving while intoxicated and is the same as driving after four beers (“DWI”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) defines aggressive driving as "the operation of a motor vehicle in a manner that endangers or is likely to endanger persons or property"—a traffic and not a criminal offense like road rage. Examples include speeding or driving too fast for conditions, improper lane changing, tailgating and improper passing. Approximately 6,800,000 crashes occur in the United States each year; a substantial number are estimated to be caused by aggressive driving. 1997 statistics compiled by NHTSA and the American Automobile Association show that almost 13,000 people have been injured or killed since 1990 in crashes caused by aggressive driving. According to a NHTSA survey, more than 60 percent of drivers consider unsafe driving by others, including speeding, a major personal threat to themselves and their families. About 30 percent of respondents said they felt their safety was threatened in the last month, while 67 percent felt this threat during the last year. Weaving, tailgating, distracted drivers, and unsafe lane changes were some of the unsafe behaviors identified. Aggressive drivers are more likely to drink and drive or drive unbelted. Aggressive driving can easily escalate into an incident of road rage. Motorists in all 50 states have killed or injured other motorists for seemingly trivial reasons. Motorists should keep their cool in traffic, be patient and courteous to other drivers, and correct unsafe driving habits that are likely to endanger, antagonize or provoke other motorists. More than half of those surveyed by NHTSA admitted to driving aggressively on occasion. Only 14 percent felt it was "extremely dangerous" to drive 10 miles per hour over the speed limit. 62 percent of those who frequently drive in an unsafe and illegal manner said police for traffic reasons had not stopped them in the past year. The majority of those in the NHTSA survey (52 percent) said it was "very important" to do something about speeding. Ninety-eight percent of respondents thought it "important" that something be done to reduce speeding and unsafe driving. Those surveyed ranked the following countermeasures, in order, as most likely to reduce aggressive and unsafe driving behaviors: (1) more police assigned to traffic control, (2) more frequent ticketing of traffic violations, (3) higher fines, and (4) i...
Sixteen year olds have a higher crash rate than drivers of any other age. “ in 2011, teenagers accounted for 10 percent of motor vehicle crash deaths” (Teen Driving Statistics). For this purpose, Many states have begun to raise the age limit by imposing restrictions on sixteen years old drivers. For example, limiting the number of passengers they can carry while driving. “The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety released a report in May 2012 that showed that the risk of 16- or 17-year old drivers being killed in a crash increases with each additional teenage passenger in the vehicle. The risk increases 44 percent with one passenger; it doubles with two passengers, and quadruples with three or more passengers. The study analyzed crash data and the number of miles driven by 16- and 17-year olds” (Teen Driving Statistics). Another example, is that many people believe that teenage drivers have a race boy/girl mentality. This mean that when any teenager gets into a vehicle of any kind they get some type of thrilled or that the driving laws do not accommodate them in any way, shape, or form. They would go drag race ...
“The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status, or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we all believe that we are above-average drivers” -Dave Barry, comedian. The number of accidents over the last ten years have drastically increased, drivers are paying less attention to the road itself. Many individuals behind the wheel of a car believe that their driving does not affect the road conditions, however it always will. The driving habits of today are catastrophic due to the reasoning that the driving will affect other lives through reckless or distracted driving, and disobeying traffic laws.
III. Connection: Everday we have to deal with these people on our roads. We run a great risk just driving around the corner to go to the store or a quiet trip to church. According to U.S. News and World Report, the U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that two-thirds of fatalities are at least partially caused by aggressive driving. Fortunately, there is something we can do about it.