Learner drivers’ intentions to engage in risky driving: importance of the fear of driving and changing intentions in the learning process

Aim of study – to measure a change in learner drivers’ attitude towards driving and the fear of driving in the process of learning by predicting their intentions to engage in risky driving. Methods. The article presents results of a research that was carried out in driving schools of Klaipėda, Šilutė, Skuodas, Kretinga, and Žemaičių Naumiestis. 366 learner drivers from these schools participated in the research. The subjects were questioned twice: the first questioning took place at the beginning of their driving courses, while the second one took place at the end of these courses (after two months) when the students had already passed their theoretical and practical examinations at the same driving schools. Three questionnaires were used in the research. The first one aimed to determine manifestations of risky driving intentions [25]. The second tool was the DCQ ("The Driving Cognitions Questionnaire") [3] in which assessment of the fear of driving. The third instrument was a questionnaire on learner drivers’ attitudes towards road safety [16]. Results and conclusions. After two months since the beginning of the driving courses, the learner drivers’ level of fear, that was related to road accidents, unexpected driving situations, and their social fear of driving, decreased, but the attitudes towards rule-breaking and speeding became more responsible. In addition, their attitude towards risky driving by others became more negative. The learner drivers’ intentions to engage in risky driving in general were related of fear of driving at the beginning and at the end of the driving courses: the individuals who were characterised as those who tended to have a fear of driving related to road accidents, unexpected situations, and a social fear of driving had intentions to engage in risky driving. The learner drivers’ general intention to engage in risky driving was also related to their attitudes towards driving: the individuals who had stronger attitudes towards rule-breaking, speeding, and risky driving by others had stronger intentions to engage in drunk driving and speeding as well; they also tended to fail to maintain a safe distance and overtake dangerously. The research shows that learner drivers’ negative attitudes towards road safety at the beginning and the end of driving courses help to predict such learner driver’s intentions to engage in risky driving