Relationship between frustration justification and vehicle control behaviors – A simulator study

Abstract

Aggressive driving remains a common safety issue in most industrialized countries. Age and environmental factors play a role in the prevalence of aggressive driving. Congested traffic, in particular, has been associated with increased aggressive driving, suggesting that interactions with other road users as well as interpretations of others’ intentions may contribute to elevated aggression. The current study was designed to examine the effect of justification of frustrating situations on vehicle control behaviors. It was hypothesized that younger drivers would show more aggressive behaviors and would interpret intentions more negatively when compared to older drivers. Results showed that as driving experience increases, drivers were less likely to believe traffic delays were caused by others’ bad intentions. The more strongly drivers felt about traffic delays, the faster they tried to make up the lost time. When given opportunities to ‘act out’ both younger and older drivers showed a larger range of accelerating and braking magnitudes. Overall, our results suggest that mitigating aggressive driving will require cultivating a balance between time pressure and safety as well as encouraging a more positive approach to interpreting other drivers’ intentions.