Developing Safe Driving Attitudes Among Novice Drivers

Abstract

Drinking and driving is one of the most pressing issues in road safety worldwide. Alcohol impaired driving significantly increases the risk of being involved in a road crash and the severity of its consequences. Alcohol related crashes are the leading course of death and disability — they account for up to 60% of the fatalities in road crashes, while “drunk” crashes account for only about 10% of the total number of car accidents. This problem is relevant for all countries where the use of alcoholic beverages is legalized. In this study, we experimentally researched the formation of social attitudes of safe driving among novice drivers associated with drinking and driving. The experimental group of learning drivers received an additional module “Drinking and Driving are incompatible” incorporated into the traditional training course. The experiment revealed statistically significant differences in the cognitive component of the attitude of novice drivers and the absence of such in the affective and behavioral components.