Psychological and sociodemographic characteristics of accident involved drivers : a survey of the literature.

2436862PDFTech ReportVHTRC 76-R49VirginiaVirginia Transportation Research CouncilLynn, CherylVirginia. Highway Safety DivisionUnited States. National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationVirginia Highway & Transportation Research CouncilUS Transportation CollectionThis report reviews selected portions of the literature concerning the psychology of negligent driving. In particular, it stresses those studies which attempt to quantify and predict aberrant driving behavior. Reviewed are such topics as the role of demographics and driving records in accident occurrence and accident proneness, and the use of personality factors in predicting driving behavior. While much of the research previously conducted has not yielded significant results in terms of predictive validity, recent work seems promising in light of the multivariate techniques being introduced in the traffic safety field. The primary accomplishment of these multivariate studies thus far has been in the area of relevant variable identification and method validation for use in individual driver examination and in highway safety in general