1,721,147 research outputs found
Psychosocial influences on drug driving in young Australian drivers
No full textEpidemiological evidence regarding the occurrence of drug driving amongst young drivers is concerning. This study examined the prevalence of drug driving in a sample of 331 young Australian drivers (average age 24 years), as well as a number of social and psychological influences associated with the behaviour. Results revealed that 26% reported having driven under the influence of psychoactive drugs at least once in their lifetime, and 15% indicated driving within 6 hours of taking drugs and alcohol. While no participants reported being convicted of a drug driving offence, 3% had been involved in one or more crashes whilst drug driving (10% of those who had ever drug driven). Investigations revealed that drug driving behaviour was significantly correlated with vicarious punishment avoidance (r = .41) and direct punishment avoidance (r = .35), suggesting an important link between young peoples’ perceptions about detection and punishment and their own propensity to drug drive. Sensation seeking (r = .24) and attitudes (r = .34) were also significantly correlated with drug driving. Further evidence indicated that those who perceived more social and non-social rewards than punishments associated with drug driving, were more likely to engage in the behaviour. Results suggest that perceptions about detection and punishment are an important influence upon drug driving behaviour for young drivers. The social and non-social rewards associated with drug driving also play an important role
A survey of unlicensed driving offenders
No full textThis paper reports the findings of a survey of 309 unlicensed driving offenders interviewed at the Brisbane Magistrates Court. A wide range of offenders participated in the study, including: disqualified and cancelled drivers; expired licence holders; drivers without a current or appropriate licence; and those who had never been licensed. The results suggest that unlicensed drivers should not be viewed as a homogenous group. Significant differences exist between offender types in terms of their socio-demographic characteristics; driving history; whether they were aware of being unlicensed; and their behaviour while unlicensed. Among some offenders, unlicensed driving appears to be indicative of a more general pattern of non-conformity; almost two-thirds of the disqualified and never licensed drivers had prior criminal convictions. While many offenders limited their driving while unlicensed, others continued to drive frequently. Moreover, almost one-third of the sample continued to drive unlicensed after being detected by the police. While there was some evidence that offenders attempted to drive more cautiously while unlicensed, this was not consistent with other aspects of their behaviour. For example, almost one-quarter of the offenders admitted driving at some time when they thought they were over the legal alcohol limit. The results highlight the need to enhance current policies and practices to counter unlicensed driving. In particular, there is a need to examine current enforcement practices since over one third of the participants reported being pulled over by the Police while driving unlicensed and not having their licence checked
The effectiveness of drink driving licence actions, remedial programs and vehicle-based sanctions
No full textThis paper reviews the effectiveness of three important types of drink driving sanctions: licence actions, remedial programs and vehicle-based actions. The sanctions are assessed in terms of their effect on the drink driving behaviour of both the general community and offenders. The results confirm that licence actions, such as licence suspension/disqualification, are very effective. In terms of general deterrence, they are the only sanctions that have been consistently associated with reductions in community-wide drink driving behaviour. As an offender management tool, licence actions are effective in reducing the overall offence and crash rates of offenders, although many offenders continue to drive. In contrast, remedial programs appear more effective in reducing alcohol-specific offences among offenders. On balance, the best outcomes with offenders appear to be achieved through the combined use of licence actions and remedial programs. Promising results have also been achieved through the use of alcohol ignition interlocks and, to a lesser extent, other vehicle-based sanctions designed to reduce the incidence of illegal driving among offenders. However, drink driving recidivism and disqualified/suspended driving remain serious problems requiring further attention. The implications for policy development and research in Australia are discussed
The road safety implications of unlicensed driving : A survey of unlicensed drivers
No full textThis report documents the findings of a survey of 309 unlicensed driving offenders interviewed at the Brisbane Central Magistrates Court. A wide range of offenders participated in the study including disqualified and suspended drivers, expired licence holders, drivers without a current or appropriate licence, and those who had never been licensed. The results indicate that unlicensed drivers should not be viewed as a homogenous group. Significant differences exist between offender types in terms of their socio-demographic characteristics, whether they were aware of being unlicensed or not, their behaviour while unlicensed, and the factors contributing to their behaviour. Among some offenders, unlicensed driving appears to be indicative of a more general pattern of non-conformity and illegal behaviour. While many offenders limited their driving while unlicensed, others continued to drive frequently. Moreover, almost one-third of the sample continued to drive unlicensed after being detected by the police. One of the strongest predictors of both the frequency of unlicensed driving and continued driving after detection was whether the offenders needed to drive for work purposes when unlicensed. While there was some evidence that offenders attempted to drive more cautiously while unlicensed, this was not always reflected in their reported drink driving or speeding behaviour. The results highlight the need to enhance current policies and procedures to counter unlicensed driving. In particular, there is a need to examine current enforcement practices since over one-third of the participants reported being pulled over by the Police while driving unlicensed but not having their licence checked
Road safety and international visitors in Australia: looking beyond the tip of the iceberg
No full textMotor vehicle crashes consistently emerge from the travel medicine literature as the most common cause of injury and death for tourists. Yet there has been very little empirical research into the factors contributing to such crashes, and even less attention to the social and economic consequences of non-fatal crashes among tourists. Some reasons are offered for this neglected area of travel medicine, and Australian data is presented to illustrate the scale of the issue
Successes and challenges in managing illegal road user behaviours
No full text- The role of illegal behaviours in road crashes\ud
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- Three case studies in managing illegal road user behaviour: an Australian perspective\ud
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- Current and emerging challenges, including the need to: \ud
-reduce punishment avoidance\ud
-identify and manage recidivist offenders\ud
-address community attitudes and perceptions\ud
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- Countermeasure implications\u
Methodological problems associated with surveying unlicensed drivers
No full textUnlicensed driving continues to represent a major road safety problem. Besides undermining the integrity of the licensing system, it has been linked with a cluster of high-risk behaviours, such as drink driving and speeding. The limited research into unlicensed driving has largely utilised crash statistics to establish the scale and characteristics of the problem. This reliance on crash statistics reflects methodological problems associated with directly surveying unlicensed drivers. For example, due to various legal and logistical constraints, very few roadside surveys of unlicensed driving have been conducted. Although some self-report interview/questionnaire surveys have been conducted with disqualified/unlicensed drivers, the results are questionable given their low response rates. Nevertheless, surveys represent a means of gathering important information not readily available through other methods. This paper overviews work in progress toward the development of two surveys: a roadside survey to establish the prevalence of unlicensed driving and a self-report survey to explore the factors contributing to the behaviour. Following a discussion of the methodological difficulties involved, a proposed method is presented for each of the surveys
Impaired driving countermeasures : an Australian perspective
No full textThe prevalence of impaired driving in Australia\ud
Regulatory approaches used to manage:\ud
– Alcohol impaired driving\ud
– Other drug impaired driving\ud
Key countermeasures\ud
– Lower blood alcohol limits\ud
– Random breath testing (RBT)\ud
– Random drug testing (RDT)\ud
Ongoing challenges and future direction
Research priorities in driver training: bridging the gap between research and practice
No full textWhile there is a strong community perception that specialised driver training is an effective road safety countermeasure, there is currently no clear evidence that it produces safer drivers compared to less formalised approaches to learning. A number of factors have been suggested to account for this apparent lack of effectiveness. In particular, it has been suggested that conventional approaches to driver training do not systematically address the perceptual and cognitive skills required for safe driving, or the motivational or attitudinal factors which can exert a powerful influence on driver judgement and decision-making. Hence, it is possible that with further research and development that more effective driver training programs could be developed. With this prospect in mind, this paper identifies three main priorities for future research in the area. \ud
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While assessing the crash outcomes achieved by driver training should remain a priority, there is a need for evaluations to focus on a broader range of outcomes and on the processes involved in training. \ud
There is a need to focus more research attention on improving current driver training practices, particularly in relation to the development of hazard perception and decision-making skills, self-monitoring processes, and strategies to reduce the impact of risky attitudes and motivations on driving. \ud
There is a need for more theory-driven approaches to the development and evaluation of innovative training programs. This is required to ensure that training practices are based on sound principles of behaviour change, rather than on expert opinion. \ud
It is important to note that the research priorities identified in this paper cannot be addressed in any one program of research. Rather, a philosophy of incremental improvement is required. While some important driver training research initiatives continue to occur in Australia, it is an area that receives limited funding. While this is perhaps not surprising, given the state of the evidence, there is a need to ensure that the research that does occur is well directed and coordinated, and communicated to practitioners. This is vital to bridge the gap that currently exists between research and practice in the area of driver training
Road safety in Australia : successes, challenges for the future, and possibilities for the USA
No full textOverview\ud
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- Role of CARRS-Q\ud
- Australia’s road safety performance\ud
- Key features of Australia’s approach to road safety:\ud
- Strong reliance on traffic law enforcement, supported by mass media public education\ud
- Adoption of the Safe Systems approach\ud
- Ambitious road trauma reduction targets?\ud
- Ongoing challenges\ud
- Possibilities for the USA\u
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