Driving anger, sensation seeking, impulsiveness, and boredom proneness in the prediction of unsafe driving

Accid Anal Prev. 2005 Mar;37(2):341-8. doi: 10.1016/j.aap.2004.10.006.

Abstract

The present study investigated the potential contribution of sensation seeking, impulsiveness, and boredom proneness to driving anger in the prediction of aggressive and risky driving. Two hundred and twenty-four college student participants completed measures of trait driving anger, aggressive and risky driving, driving anger expression, sensation seeking, impulsiveness, and boredom proneness. Findings provided additional support for the utility of the Driving Anger Scale (DAS; Deffenbacher, J.L., Oetting, E.R., Lynch, R.S., Development of a driving anger scale, Psychological Reports, 74, 1994, 83-91.) in predicting unsafe driving. In addition, hierarchical multiple regression analyses demonstrated that sensation seeking, impulsiveness, and boredom proneness provided incremental improvements beyond the DAS in the prediction of crash-related conditions, aggressive driving, risky driving, and driving anger expression. Results support the use of multiple predictors in understanding unsafe driving behavior.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Anger*
  • Automobile Driving / psychology*
  • Boredom
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Impulsive Behavior
  • Male
  • Mississippi
  • Multivariate Analysis
  • Personality*
  • Psychological Tests*
  • Regression Analysis
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Risk-Taking*