A Complex Method for Studying Socio Psychological Factors in Risky Behavior on the Road
A Complex Method for Studying Socio Psychological Factors in Risky Behavior on the Road

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this study is to develop a complex method for assessing the socio-psychological factors that influence risky driving behavior. Recent theoretical work and empirical studies conducted in a number of countries in the field of transport psychology have been investigated, including primary factors directly related to the contemporary stage of social development in respect to risky behavior on the road. The high levels of stress in contemporary life exert a strong influence upon the need to mobilize human potential for dealing with such challenges. The present article examines a series of socio-psychological factors that influence driver behavior, and they provide the basis for seven scales that are useful for measuring such behavior. These scales describe attitudes towards problem driving, attitudes towards compliance with traffic regulations, attitudes towards drink driving, the influence of family and friends, problematic behavior on the road, route planning and searching for road information. The questionnaire developed for measuring these scales has been tested for the reliability and validity of the parameters used. The complex methodology presented here for evaluating the socio-psychological factors that influence risky driving behavior constitutes a tool for analyzing changing environmental conditions that affect drivers. It resides upon contemporary achievements in the field of transport psychology throughout the world and is now being developed in Bulgaria for the first time. The results obtained from utilizing that method in our study promise to be useful in preventing risky behavior by updating driver training as well as preparing programs for working with potentially dangerous drivers.

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