DRIVER IMMATURITY -- A KEY TRAIT IN FATAL ACCIDENTS

RECORDS OF 904 LICENSED OREGON DRIVERS INVOLVED IN FATAL ACCIDENTS (1961-62) WERE COMPARED TO THOSE OF A RANDOMLY SELECTED CONTROL GROUP FROM THE GENERAL DRIVING POPULATION. THE EXPECTED DISPROPORTIONATE NUMBER OF MALES AND YOUNG, INEXPERIENCED DRIVERS OF BOTH SEXES WAS NOTED. AS A GROUP, THESE DRIVERS HAD A TYPICAL DRIVING HISTORIES. NOT ONLY DID THEY HAVE MORE ACCIDENT AND CONVICTION ENTRIES ON THEIR RECORDS, BUT ALSO, THEY WERE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO HAVE HAD A TRAFFIC CONVICTION WITHIN THE LAST 12 MONTHS IMMEDIATELY PRIOR TO THE FATAL ACCIDENT. ANALYSIS OF THESE HIGH CONVICTION RECORDS OF THE MALE DRIVERS REVEALED THAT CERTAIN VIOLATION TYPES WERE EXPECIALLY CHARACTERISTIC OF THE FATAL ACCIDENT GROUP. EXCEPTIONALLY PROMINENT WAS THE TENDENCY OF THE MALE FATAL ACCIDENT DRIVERS IN THEIR 30'S, 40'S, AND EVEN OLDER, TO HAVE CONVICTION PATTERNS SIMILAR TO THOSE OF THE YOUNGEST DRIVERS IN THE CONTROL GROUP. THESE DATA SUGGEST THAT FATAL ACCIDENT DRIVERS, AS A GROUP, MAY POSSESS LESS MATURITY THAN ORDINARILY EXPECTED FOR THEIR RESPECTIVE CHRONOLOGICAL AGES. THESE REMARKS ALSO PERTAIN TO A LESSER DEGREE TO THOSE MALE DRIVERS NOT JUDGED CULPABLE IN THE FATAL ACCIDENTS, AS WELL AS TO THE CULPABLE ONES. /AUTHOR/

• Corporate Authors:

  Oregon Department Motor Vehicles

  ,    
• Authors:
  • Kaestner, N F
• Publication Date: 0

Media Info

• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: 17 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; Crash causes; Drivers; Fatalities; Human characteristics
• Uncontrolled Terms: Driver characteristics
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00223919
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Nat Safety Council Safety Res Info Serv
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 13 1972 12:00AM