Avoiding drunk driving with a push

The present study explores a novel approach for changing implicit attitudes toward drunk driving with behavioural training. Contrary to explicit attitudes, which people are consciously aware of and therefore can state, implicit attitudes are not necessarily consciously accessible; however, implicit attitudes also direct and affect behaviour. In order to combat problem behaviour such as drunk driving, it is, therefore, crucial to measure and target both types of attitudes. This randomised controlled study first measured implicit drunk driving attitudes. One week later, participants performed a behavioural training procedure, designed to influence implicit drunk driving attitudes, and a subsequent implicit drunk driving attitude test. We randomised young male participants into an experimental group that learned to avoid drunk driving stimuli and a control group performing a neutral version of the training setup. Results showed that behavioural training could change implicit drunk driving attitudes. However, contrary to expectations, the control group’s implicit attitudes also changed. We propose that drivers can hold both positive and negative drunk driving implicit attitudes, and a priming effect may have contributed to the results. We outline and discuss the results. Document type: Articl

Avoiding drunk driving with a push

Abstract The present study explores a novel approach for changing implicit attitudes toward drunk driving with behavioural training. Contrary to explicit attitudes, which people are consciously aware of and therefore can state, implicit attitudes are not necessarily consciously accessible; however, implicit attitudes also direct and affect behaviour. In order to combat problem behaviour such as drunk driving, it is, therefore, crucial to measure and target both types of attitudes. This randomised controlled study first measured implicit drunk driving attitudes. One week later, participants performed a behavioural training procedure, designed to influence implicit drunk driving attitudes, and a subsequent implicit drunk driving attitude test. We randomised young male participants into an experimental group that learned to avoid drunk driving stimuli and a control group performing a neutral version of the training setup. Results showed that behavioural training could change implicit drunk driving attitudes. However, contrary to expectations, the control group’s implicit attitudes also changed. We propose that drivers can hold both positive and negative drunk driving implicit attitudes, and a priming effect may have contributed to the results. We outline and discuss the results

Forbedring af unges evne til at forudsige potentielle farer i trafikken vha. kørselssimulatortræning

Unge bilister forbliver overrepræsenterede i trafikulykkesstatistikker. Bilisters evne til at identificere potentielle risikosituationer samt til at reagere adækvat i disse situationer forbedres gradvist baseret på erfaring med håndtering af en bred vifte af trafikale situationer. Internationalt betegnes denne evne ofte som hazard perception skills (HPS). Formålet med denne undersøgelse er at afdække, om yngre bilisters HPS i fodgængerrelaterede situationer kan forbedres gennem et specialdesignet træningsforløb, gennemført i en kørselssimulator. Træningsforløbet omfattede en kombination af træningskørsel i en kørselssimulator, en video med et lydspor med ekspertkommentarer vedr. bilkørsel samt en afspilning af deltagernes egen træningskørsel. 30 unge bilister modtog træning og deres resultater blev sammenlignet med 30 utrænede bilister. Sammenligningen blev baseret på deres visuelle fikseringer og køreadfærd i forskellige fodgængerrelaterede situationer af varierende kompleksitet. Resultaterne viste, at trænede bilister reagerede på en af tre skjulte farer ved at reducere hastigheden, mens utrænede bilister ikke gjorde. Analysen af deltageres visuelle fikseringer viste, at de trænede bilister oftere fikserede på steder, hvor farer kunne være skjult. Derudover havde trænede bilister en lavere selvvurderet HPS efter træningen end før træningen. Interventionen havde en positiv effekt med hensyn til at forbedre bilisternes kørehastighed og visuelle fikseringer i potentielt kritiske fodgængerrelaterede situationer, hvilket kræver mere avancerede HPS. Resultaterne tyder på, at interventionen med fordel kan videreudvikles med henblik på at implementere et ekstra modul, som led i den køreskolebaserede køreundervisning, for at sikre nye bilister de bedst mulige HPS, når de får kørekørt

Preliminary results from the project ”Slow On the Bottle – Enjoy the Road (SOBER)”: Instruments to measure implicit associations towards drunk-driving and to change implicit drunk-driving associations

Attitude-based interventions are often a key element in attempts to change behavior, but do not always have the expected effect. A reason for the lack of success may be that people have two types of attitudes, explicit (introspectively accessible, what people say they mean) and implicit attitudes (not accessible to conscious introspection, cannot be measured by questionnaires, but by other experiments methods). Implicit attitudes are assessed by measuring participants implicit associations between a target category (here drunk-driving and sober-driving) and valence categories (here good and bad words). International research shows that a person’s implicit associations’ sensitivity can be changed by relatively simple behavioral methods. This study aims to adjust existing methods of implicit associations’ measurement and of implicit associations change, to measure and change implicit associations towards drunk-driving. As a first step, implicit associations towards drunk-driving and sober-driving were measured with the Go/No-Go Associations Task (GNAT), and the implicit associations change was performed with behavioral training method, the Avoid/Approach Task (AAT). The preliminary results show that the GNAT successfully measures implicit associations towards drunk-driving and sober-driving. Also, the preliminary results show that the implicit associations towards drunk-driving and sober-driving were changed with the AAT. The results are promising as it looks like both instruments are applicable. The study has both national and international value, as the first study that measures implicit attitudes towards drunk-driving and also the first to try to change drunk-driving implicit attitudes. Pending a complete sample and further analysis, the results will reveal drunk-driving attitudes and if these attitudes can be changed in a socially beneficial ways

The relationship between explicit and implicit attitudes towards drunk driving

Despite downward trends, driving under the influence (DUI) remains one of the most salient traffic safety problems. It is crucial to identify the processes behind a problem behaviour to target the most effective measures to address it. One way of exploring precursors of behaviour is measuring attitudes. All persons hold two types of attitudes, explicit and implicit. Although only one of these (explicit) lays the groundwork for current understandings of DUI, it is imperative to explore both types of attitudes. We explore the relationship between explicit and implicit attitudes towards DUI for the first time in the field. Explicit attitudes (what we say we mean) are measured by a questionnaire. Implicit attitudes (which are introspectively unidentified or inaccurately identified traces of past experience) are measured by the Go/No-go Association Task (GNAT) in a sample of young male drivers (n = 101). The results show a relationship between the two types of attitudes, but not completely in the expected way. Depending whether the amount of alcohol is over or under the legal limit, the relationship between explicit and implicit attitudes varies. We discuss the findings and provide directions for future investigations

Forbedring af unges evne til at forudsige potentielle farer i trafikken vha. kørselssimulatortræning

Unge bilister forbliver overrepræsenterede i trafikulykkesstatistikker. Bilisters evne til at identificere potentielle risikosituationer samt til at reagere adækvat i disse situationer forbedres gradvist baseret på erfaring med håndtering af en bred vifte af trafikale situationer. Internationalt betegnes denne evne ofte som hazard perception skills (HPS). Formålet med denne undersøgelse er at afdække, om yngre bilisters HPS i fodgængerrelaterede situationer kan forbedres gennem et specialdesignet træningsforløb, gennemført i en kørselssimulator. Træningsforløbet omfattede en kombination af træningskørsel i en kørselssimulator, en video med et lydspor med ekspertkommentarer vedr. bilkørsel samt en afspilning af deltagernes egen træningskørsel. 30 unge bilister modtog træning og deres resultater blev sammenlignet med 30 utrænede bilister. Sammenligningen blev baseret på deres visuelle fikseringer og køreadfærd i forskellige fodgængerrelaterede situationer af varierende kompleksitet. Resultaterne viste, at trænede bilister reagerede på en af tre skjulte farer ved at reducere hastigheden, mens utrænede bilister ikke gjorde. Analysen af deltageres visuelle fikseringer viste, at de trænede bilister oftere fikserede på steder, hvor farer kunne være skjult. Derudover havde trænede bilister en lavere selvvurderet HPS efter træningen end før træningen. Interventionen havde en positiv effekt med hensyn til at forbedre bilisternes kørehastighed og visuelle fikseringer i potentielt kritiske fodgængerrelaterede situationer, hvilket kræver mere avancerede HPS. Resultaterne tyder på, at interventionen med fordel kan videreudvikles med henblik på at implementere et ekstra modul, som led i den køreskolebaserede køreundervisning, for at sikre nye bilister de bedst mulige HPS, når de får kørekørt