SHOULD DRIVERS THINK? --ROAD USER BEHAVIOR. THEORY AND RESEARCH. PAPERS PRESENTED AT THE 2ND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ROAD SAFETY HELD IN GRONINGEN, NETHERLANDS, AUGUST 1987

Systematic driver education programmes have been with US for over 50 years. Over this time these programmes have evolved from motivational and basic-skill oriented programmes, to programmes which used the results of research on information processing psychology, and which looked into the basic cognitive processes that people used to modify their driving behaviour. But it was also noticed that the present state of affairs in driver training and testing was still "negative, or at best inconclusive". If there was any effect at all, it was neither large nor lasting, and there was no demonstrable positive effect on the primary criterion: accident statistics. In a certain way the answer to the question "should drivers think" was negative. However, if to think was taken to mean planning one's actions, or anticipating what may happen next, then indeed drivers should think and be taught to think. That would imply that we taught drivers to stay with their task rather than become an impartial observer of their performance. It was also concluded that the role of friends and parents can be sometimes greater in traffic education than that of official instructors. For the covering abstract of the conference see IRRD 815404.