Why we think we are better drivers than we actually are.. and other mysteries of driving. Professor Alan Tapp, Bristol Social Marketing Centre, UWE.

1. Behavioural Meetup
Guest Speaker: Professor Alan Tapp
Why we think we are better drivers than we
actually are.. and other mysteries of driving

2. Why we think we are better drivers than
we actually are.. and other mysteries of
driving.
Professor Alan Tapp, Bristol Social Marketing Centre, UWE

3. I am a good driver
I am in control
The risks are low
I am law abiding
40 speed limit
I want to fit in
Sorry, what did you say?
This is my back yard

4. The speed paradox
 90% of drivers approve of speed limits
 But two thirds of drivers speed
 One third habitually speed
 Can anyone explain what’s going on here?..!
Stradling, S., Campbell, M., Allan, I., Gorrell, R., Hill, J., Winter, M. & Hope, S.
(2003) The Speeding Driver: Who, How and Why?
Edinburgh: Scottish Executive Development Department Research Findings No. 170/2003.

5. Self-enhancement bias
….. has been widely attributed to the tendency for drivers to over-estimate
their own driving ability and under-estimate that of others..
Svenson, O. (1981) Are we all less risky and more skilful than our fellow drivers?,
Acta Psychologica, 47, 143-148.
Attributed to an ‘illusion of control’ (a belief of personal control over events
that, in reality, is not merited)
McKenna, F. (1993), "It won't happen to me: Unrealistic optimism or
illusion of control?" British Journal of Psychology
(British Psychological Society) 84, 1, 39–50

6. Why do we suffer from the
illusion of control?
 Ego-defence?
 Lack of
feedback..!

7.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXHZvlsU6yk&feature=player_
embedded
 South Australia campaign.
 Attempt to overcome illusion of control problem by talking about
other people .. and the need for defensive driving.

8. The risks of speeding are
contested
How well do we calculate risk in our everyday lives?

10. “It is common (even amongst driver trainers) to find the argument that
speeding is not risky provided the skill levels of drivers is high enough to
handle the speed”.
McKenna, F., (2010) Education in Road Safety –
Are We Getting It Right? Report for RAC Foundation.
Report Number: 10/113
“Assessing risk is a calculation most people are poorly equipped to make
accurately.”
Roberts, I. (2013) Why improving public health may
lead to more injury not less. In Safety, sustainability
and future urban transport, ed. Mohan, D., Eicher: New Delhi
.

11. Attitudes to law breaking
I’m not a criminal !

13. “94% of drivers see themselves as law abiding…”
Musselwhite, C., Avineri, E., Fulcher, E., Goodwin, P., and Susilo, Y. (2010b)
Public attitudes to road user safety: a review of the
literature 2000-2009. University Transport Study Group; Plymouth.
So…
“enforcement of speed limits as strict liability adds to the sense of
unfairness”.
Wells, H., 2012, The fast and the furious: drivers,
speed cameras and control in a risk society, Ashgate: Surrey.
Attitudes to law breaking

14. Who breaks the law?
Regular speeders are drivers whose high confidence in their own skills
lead them to conclude that speed limit laws should not apply to them.
In contrast rare speeders feel a moral imperative to comply, and pay
strong attention to speed limits.
Corbett, C. and Simon, F. (1992) Decisions to break or adhere to the
rules of the road, viewed from the rational choice perspective.
British Journal of Criminology, 32, 4, 537-549
A final category may be instrumental speeders: those who make a
purely instrumental judgement whether to speed based on the chances of
being caught speeding.
Fleiter, J., Watson, B. & Lennon A. (2013) Effective punishment
experiences - a novel approach to conceptualising behavioural
punishers and reinforcers in a road safety context. In N. Castro (Ed.),
Psychology of Punishment: New Research (pp. 1-30): Nova.

15. Personalised speed limits

17. Personalised speed limits
Drivers do not regard speed limits as absolutes,
instead creating a personal limit that they felt better
expressed the true risks.
Corbett, C. and Simon, F. (1992b) Unlawful driving behaviour: a
criminological perspective. Contractor report 310. Crowthorne: Transport Research Laboratory.
Fleiter, J. and Watson, B. (2006) The speed paradox: the misalignment between
driver attitudes and speeding behaviour. Journal of the Australasian College of Road Safety, 17, 2, 23‐30.
Mannering, F., (2009) An empirical analysis of driver perceptions of the relationship
between speed limits and safety. Transportation Research Part F 12, 2, 99–106

18. The TAC Wipe Off 5 Campaign
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detail
page&v=nyOfJTi0jFw

19. Copycat effects of other
drivers on one’s own
driving

20. Four Copycat effects
1. Copycat Drivers adopt speeds according to the speed of others on the
road.
2. ‘Pressure to keep up’: In the U.K. one third of drivers said they would
drive faster if the traffic is moving faster than they normally travel at.
3. Drivers over-estimate speeds of other drivers to create a ‘false
consensus’ that distorts driving norms
4. Self identity & ego-defence…people want to be regarded as ‘normal’..
Stradling, S., Campbell, M., Allan, I., Gorrell, R., Hill, J., Winter, M. & Hope, S.
(2003) The Speeding Driver: Who, How and Why? Edinburgh:
Scottish Executive Development Department Research Findings No. 170/2003.
Musselwhite, C., Avineri, E., Fulcher, E., Goodwin, P., and Susilo, Y.
(2010b) Public attitudes to road user safety: a review of the literature 2000-2009.
University Transport Study Group; Plymouth

21. Driving
automaticity

22. Driving automaticity
attitudes to speeding study.. found 46% claimed to speed ‘without realising
it’.
Caused by… width of the road, the quietness of the car at speed, and
speed perceptions distorted by long travel at high speeds on motorways
McKenna, F. (2010) Behavioural research in road safety. Road Safety Congress: Eighteenth Seminar; London:
Department for Transport.
Recarte, M. and Nunes, L. (2002) Mental load and loss of control over speed in real driving: towards a theory of
attentional speed control. Transportation Research Part F, 5, 2, 111-122
Corbett, C. and Simon, F. (1992) Unlawful driving behaviour: a criminological perspective. Contractor report 310.
Crowthorne: Transport Research Laboratory.

23. The JIMBY effect
…the tendency of drivers to drive slowly on roads within their
own neighbourhood but faster elsewhere.
Tapp, A. , Nancarrow, C., and Davis, A. (2015), Exploring driver support and compliance
in 20mph limits in GB, Transportation Research part F (accepted, to be published)

24. I am a good driver These messages are for
others
I am in control I drive everyday and
nothing bad happens
The risks are low This won’t happen to me
I am law abiding These speed cameras are
there to make money
40 speed limit ..= 45
I want to fit in Everyone else on that road
is going quickly
Sorry, what did you say? Oh – were you talking to
me.. About driving?
This is my back yard So I’ll drive carefully here..
But back to normal
everywhere else

25. cognitive dissonance : the anxiety
people feel when what they believe is
challenged by contradictory information.
So they adjust the information so that
it fits with their belief system…
So…. advertising messages don’t get
through.
What happens when our habits
are challenged?

26. Seeking rational
responses:
Personal survival
Care for others
Aware of risks at all
times and seeking to
minimise risk
Health & safety is a
priority
Information about
risks… has little
or no effect
I am a skilful driver
Driving’s something I
never think about
My driving is better than
average – these messages
are for the others
I drive just like everybody
else – I fit in with the crowd
I have driven for years
and not crashed
I can calculate the risks
very accurately

27. Behaviour change
What’s the evidence?

28. Effects of road safety campaigns on
road accidents
General effect −9% (−13; −5)
Mass media alone +1% (−9;+12)
Mass media+enforcement −13% (−19; −6)
Mass media+enforcement+education −14% (−22; −5)
Local individualised campaigns −39% (−56; −17)
R. Elvik, T. Vaa, A. Hoye, A. Erke, M. Sorensen (Eds.),
The Handbook of Road Safety Measures,
2nd revised edition, Elsevier, Amsterdam, 2009.

29. “Only if people feel that the portrayed
consequences are relevant to themselves
and feel they are able to take the
preventive measures the campaign proposes,
does the fear-appeal have a chance to work”
Hoekstra, T. and Wegman, F. (2011) Improving the effectiveness of
road safety campaigns: Current and new practices IATSS Research 34; 80–86

30. So…to make further progress,
do we need to think outside
the box of the current design
of road safety campaigns?

31. Control/enforce regulate, rules, police, screen, roadside, warnings,
fines, monitor & feedback
Design/engineer physical environment: policy, systems, road design,
safety systems, in-car technology, mobile devices, on-
road technology, signage, urban planning..
social: community, engagement,
Marketing insights, motivation, segment, offers/propositions
products, incentives/exchange, persuade,
influence, normalise, attract & keep, service,
relationships.
Educate awareness, inform, teach, train, inspire, skills, support
& care, confidence, training
The “control, design, market, educate” framework

32. Appreciate your time
Alan.Tapp@uwe.ac.uk

33. meetup.com/behavioural/
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