Preventing risky driving: A novel and efficient brief intervention focusing on acknowledgement of personal risk factors.

Impulsive personality is an important predictor of risky driving. Acknowledging their impulsive tendencies may help novice drivers to drive more safely. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a novel brief intervention targeting novice drivers' risky behavior in traffic, taking into account potential moderator effects. Driving school students (n=1866) were divided into an intervention group and a control group. The intervention consisted of a lecture and group work (1.5h). Subjects' traffic offenses and crashes were monitored during the following year using police and traffic insurance fund databases. The groups were similar in their baseline characteristics. The intervention group had half as many speeding violations in the year following the intervention compared with the controls. The proportion of speeders was significantly lower in the intervention group compared with the control group in subgroups of subjects with medium cognitive abilities and low or medium BIS-11 impulsiveness levels. In alpha(2A)-adrenoceptor gene (ADRA2A) G allele carriers, general traffic risk and speeding decreased in response to the intervention, unlike in subjects with the CC genotype. It is concluded that brief interventions that are integrated into the driving education program and focus on personal psychological risk factors may be effective for improving traffic safety.

[1]  Divera A M Twisk,et al.  Trends in young driver risk and countermeasures in European countries. , 2007, Journal of safety research.

[2]  D. Comings,et al.  A “line item” approach to the identification of genes involved in polygenic behavioral disorders: The Adrenergic α2A (ADRA2A) gene , 2003, American journal of medical genetics. Part B, Neuropsychiatric genetics : the official publication of the International Society of Psychiatric Genetics.

[3]  M. McGue,et al.  Association between the adrenergic alpha 2A receptor gene (ADRA2A) and measures of irritability, hostility, impulsivity and memory in normal subjects. , 2000, Psychiatric genetics.

[4]  S. Dickman,et al.  PERSONALITY PROCESSES AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES Functional and Dysfunctional Impulsivity: Personality and Cognitive Correlates , 1990 .

[5]  J. Beck,et al.  Cognitive Therapy: Basics and Beyond , 1995 .

[6]  A James McKnight,et al.  Young novice drivers: careless or clueless? , 2003, Accident; analysis and prevention.

[7]  David D Clarke,et al.  Voluntary risk taking and skill deficits in young driver accidents in the UK. , 2005, Accident; analysis and prevention.

[8]  L. Steinberg,et al.  CURRENT DIRECTIONS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE Risk Taking in Adolescence New Perspectives From Brain and Behavioral Science , 2022 .

[9]  R West,et al.  Mild social deviance, Type-A behaviour pattern and decision-making style as predictors of self-reported driving style and traffic accident risk. , 1993, British journal of psychology.

[10]  F. Rivera,et al.  MspI identifies a biallelic polymorphism in the promoter region of the alpha 2A-adrenergic receptor gene. , 1997, Clinical genetics.

[11]  B A Jonah,et al.  Sensation seeking and risky driving: a review and synthesis of the literature. , 1997, Accident; analysis and prevention.

[12]  Diva Eensoo,et al.  Predicting drunk driving: contribution of alcohol use and related problems, traffic behaviour, personality and platelet monoamine oxidase (MAO) activity. , 2005, Alcohol and alcoholism.

[13]  P. Ulleberg PERSONALITY SUBTYPES OF YOUNG DRIVERS. RELATIONSHIP TO RISK-TAKING PREFERENCES, ACCIDENT INVOLVEMENT, AND RESPONSE TO A TRAFFIC SAFETY CAMPAIGN , 2001 .

[14]  Virginia Gil-Rivas,et al.  Designing and Implementing Interventions to Promote Health and Prevent Illness. , 2007 .

[15]  M. Russell New Assessment Tools for Risk Drinking During Pregnancy , 1994, Alcohol health and research world.

[16]  Kenneth W Griffin,et al.  Long-Term Follow-Up Effects of a School-Based Drug Abuse Prevention Program on Adolescent Risky Driving , 2004, Prevention Science.

[17]  R. S. Lynch,et al.  Cognitive-behavioral treatment of high anger drivers. , 2002, Behaviour research and therapy.

[18]  L. Rohde,et al.  Association of the Adrenergic α2A Receptor Gene With Methylphenidate Improvement of Inattentive Symptoms in Children and Adolescents With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder , 2007 .

[19]  D. Cox,et al.  A review of driving risks and impairments associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and the effects of stimulant medication on driving performance. , 2007, Journal of safety research.

[20]  J. Harro,et al.  Effect of α2A-adrenoceptor C-1291G genotype and maltreatment on hyperactivity and inattention in adolescents , 2010, Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry.

[21]  R. G. Frank,et al.  Cambridge Handbook of Psychology, Health and Medicine: Accidents and unintentional injuries , 2007 .

[22]  J. Allik,et al.  Association of traffic behavior with personality and platelet monoamine oxidase activity in schoolchildren. , 2007, The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine.

[23]  J. Patton,et al.  Factor structure of the Barratt impulsiveness scale. , 1995, Journal of clinical psychology.

[24]  Hamish A Deery,et al.  Hazard and Risk Perception among Young Novice Drivers , 1999 .

[25]  J. Parik,et al.  Platelet MAO activity and the 5-HTT gene promoter polymorphism are associated with impulsivity and cognitive style in visual information processing , 2007, Psychopharmacology.

[26]  P. Salzberg,et al.  Differentiating "bad drivers" with and without a DWI. , 1995, Journal of studies on alcohol.

[27]  J. Raven,et al.  Manual for Raven's progressive matrices and Mill Hill vocabulary scales , 1981 .

[28]  Edward P. Sarafino,et al.  Health Psychology: Biopsychosocial Interactions , 1990 .

[29]  F. Rivera,et al.  Mspl identifies a biallelic polymorphism in the promoter region of the α2A‐adrenergic receptor gene , 1997 .

[30]  J. Parik,et al.  Associations between an alpha 2a adrenergic receptor gene polymorphism and adolescent personality , 2008, American journal of medical genetics. Part B, Neuropsychiatric genetics : the official publication of the International Society of Psychiatric Genetics.

[31]  L. Rohde,et al.  Further evidence of the involvement of alpha-2A-adrenergic receptor gene (ADRA2A) in inattentive dimensional scores of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder , 2006, Molecular Psychiatry.

[32]  Diva Eensoo,et al.  Adaptive and maladaptive impulsivity, platelet monoamine oxidase (MAO) activity and risk-admitting in different types of risky drivers , 2006, Psychopharmacology.

[33]  J. Allik,et al.  A Study of Intelligence in Estonia , 2002, Psychological reports.

[34]  J Field,et al.  Safe driving education programs at school: Lessons from New Zealand , 1998, Australian and New Zealand journal of public health.

[35]  J. Nigg,et al.  The adrenergic receptor α-2A gene (ADRA2A) and neuropsychological executive functions as putative endophenotypes for childhood ADHD , 2006, Cognitive, affective & behavioral neuroscience.

[36]  Nils Petter Gregersen,et al.  FROM CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE TO PERSONAL SELF-CONTROL; BROADENING THE PERSPECTIVES TO DRIVER EDUCATION , 2002 .

[37]  Birgitta Falk,et al.  Developing traffic safety interventions from conceptions of risks and accidents , 2007 .

[38]  Eugene R. Oetting,et al.  CHARACTERISTICS AND TREATMENT OF HIGH-ANGER DRIVERS , 2000 .

[39]  R. S. Lynch,et al.  Anger, aggression, risky behavior, and crash-related outcomes in three groups of drivers. , 2003, Behaviour research and therapy.

[40]  Mark A Elliott,et al.  Promoting drivers' compliance with speed limits: testing an intervention based on the theory of planned behaviour. , 2009, British journal of psychology.

[41]  Robert B Isler,et al.  Video-based road commentary training improves hazard perception of young drivers in a dual task. , 2009, Accident; analysis and prevention.

[42]  L. Rohde,et al.  Association of the adrenergic alpha2A receptor gene with methylphenidate improvement of inattentive symptoms in children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. , 2007, Archives of general psychiatry.

[43]  Robert West,et al.  Cambridge Handbook of Psychology, Health and Medicine: List of contributors , 2007 .

[44]  Peter Makeham Traffic Education Strategy , 2000 .

[45]  N P Gregersen,et al.  Road safety improvement in large companies. An experimental comparison of different measures. , 1996, Accident; analysis and prevention.

[46]  Dorothy J Begg,et al.  Identifying predictors of persistent non-alcohol or drug-related risky driving behaviours among a cohort of young adults. , 2004, Accident; analysis and prevention.

[47]  T. Rundmo,et al.  Personality, risky driving and accident involvement among Norwegian drivers , 2002 .

[48]  Ingrid van Schagen,et al.  Driving speed and the risk of road crashes: a review. , 2006, Accident; analysis and prevention.