Profiling off-road motorcycle and all-terrain riders in Queensland, Australia

The current research aimed to profile off-road riders to identify specific sub-groups in relation to their risk-related behaviours and perceptions. A total of 235 adults from the Australian state of Queensland who had ridden a motorcycle or ATV off-road in the last 12 months were recruited. A cluster analysis was applied to the survey data. Two distinct clusters of riders were identified, which corresponded with the self-report of injury from an off-road riding crash in the prior 12 months. The injured cluster had a significantly higher mean risk propensity and use of safety equipment, though did not differ on self-reported risk taking. The injured cluster as a whole included a higher percentage of males, was younger, and rode more often for recreational or competitive purposes than the non-crash involved cluster. The results indicate that the crash cluster may be both more aware of the potential risks of riding and more willing to ride in a riskier manner.

[1]  P. Bellaby,et al.  Approaches to the Risk of Riding Motorcycles: Reflections on the Problem of Reconciling Statistical Risk Assessment and Motorcyclists' Own Reasons for Riding , 2001 .

[2]  R. Franklin,et al.  Farm-related injury presenting to an Australian base hospital. , 2003, The Australian journal of rural health.

[3]  Bruce Kirkcaldy,et al.  Comparing personality constructs of risk-taking behavior , 1998 .

[4]  F. McKenna,et al.  Risk taking from the participant's perspective: the case of driving and accident risk. , 2006, Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association.

[5]  James E Harrison,et al.  Hospital separations due to injury and poisoning, Australia 2008-09 , 2008 .

[6]  J. Gower A General Coefficient of Similarity and Some of Its Properties , 1971 .

[7]  Yaniv Hanoch,et al.  Domain Specificity in Experimental Measures and Participant Recruitment , 2006, Psychological science.

[8]  E. Weber,et al.  A Domain-Specific Risk-Attitude Scale: Measuring Risk Perceptions and Risk Behaviors , 2002 .

[9]  M. Gardner,et al.  The continuing problem of all-terrain vehicle injuries in children. , 1998, Journal of pediatric surgery.

[10]  G B Rodgers,et al.  Risk factors for all-terrain vehicle injuries: a national case-control study. , 2001, American journal of epidemiology.

[11]  Tomasz Zaleskiewicz,et al.  Beyond risk seeking and risk aversion: personality and the dual nature of economic risk taking , 2001 .

[12]  C. Newgard,et al.  Statewide assessment of injury and death rates among riders of off-road vehicles treated at trauma centers. , 2007, Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

[13]  R. Meertens,et al.  Measuring an individual's tendency to take risks: The risk propensity scale. , 2008 .

[14]  C. Bevan,et al.  The increasing problem of motorcycle injuries in children and adolescents , 2008 .

[15]  M. Zuckerman Behavioral Expressions and Biosocial Bases of Sensation Seeking , 1994 .

[16]  Poison Prevention,et al.  All-Terrain Vehicles: Two-, Three-, and Four-Wheeled Unlicensed Motorized Vehicles , 1987, Pediatrics.

[17]  J. Tallon,et al.  Major injury associated with all-terrain vehicle use in Nova Scotia: a 5-year review. , 2002, CJEM.

[18]  Dorothy Jean Begg,et al.  Motorcycle & ATV Crashes in New Zealand Resulting in Death and Hospitalization III:Non-traffic Crashes , 1995 .

[19]  C F Finch,et al.  Incidence of serious injury and death during sport and recreation activities in Victoria, Australia , 2005, British Journal of Sports Medicine.

[20]  M. Legge,et al.  Age related changes in drivers' crash risk and crash type. , 1998, Accident; analysis and prevention.

[21]  E. Soane,et al.  Personality and domain‐specific risk taking , 2005 .