Personality predictors of driving accidents

Abstract

Young Canadian automobile drivers (16–29 years) were involved in a survey to explore the relationship between personality constructs and car-driving behaviour. Subjects with driving violations were not necessarily more involved in driving accidents per se than those without any violations (convictions), but there was a moderate correlation between driving accidents and violations. Drivers without driving violations preferred lower levels of arousal (arousal avoidance), were lower on tension risk-taking behaviour, thrill and adventure seeking, and were more inhibited (avoid socially stimulating situations) when compared with ‘violators’. Step-wise multiple regression revealed that particularly the last two subscales of the Sensation-seeking scale emerged as effective predictors of the number of moving violations. Accident involvement was unrelated to age, or estimated overall kilometres travelled, but was significantly positively correlated with time since passing one's license (length of driving experience). The personality traits that discriminated accident-free and accident-involved drivers revealed that the non-accident group, who displayed more pleasure in organising and anticipating goals rather than immediate sensations, expressed a higher need for personal control, were significantly less risk-taking in their behaviour, were more conforming and inclined to avoid novel sensations as well as socially-stimulating situations.