Graduated driver licensing (GDL) is designed to reduce young driver injuries and fatalities on the road. While GDL systems impose additional restrictions on new drivers to reduce this crash risk, compliance with these restrictions and other licensing requirements can be low for young drivers. This research examines the influence of informal and formal deterrence measures on the compliance of provisionally licensed drivers, and the role that shame plays in mediating these relationships. The key independent variables measured were informal deterrence imparted by parents, formal deterrence imparted by police, and shame-related emotion, while compliance with road laws was the dependent variable. Using survey data from 151 young provisionally licensed drivers from Australia, the results indicate that informal deterrence, but not formal deterrence, is related to young drivers' compliance with road rules. Further, the effect of informal deterrence on compliance behaviour was mediated by young drivers' feelings of shame over wrongdoing. These findings suggest that internal psychological mechanisms need to be examined in addition to deterrence processes to understand young drivers' compliance behaviour. Importantly, this study has key policy implications including the utilisation of third-party policing practices such as the inclusion of parents in monitoring young drivers' behaviour on the road.

Road policing is an important tool used to modify road user behaviour. While other theories, such as deterrence theory, are significant in road policing, there may be a role for using procedural justice as a framework to improve outcomes in common police citizen interactions such as traffic law enforcement. This study, using a sample of 237 young novice drivers, considered how the four elements of procedural justice (voice, neutrality, respect and trustworthiness) were perceived in relation to two forms of speed enforcement: point-to-point (or average) speed and mobile speed cameras. Only neutrality was related to both speed camera types suggesting that it may be possible to influence behaviour by emphasising one or more elements, rather than using all components of procedural justice. This study is important as it indicates that including at least some elements of procedural justice in more automated policing encounters can encourage citizen compliance.

Purpose Road policing is a key method used to improve driver compliance with road laws. However, the authors have a very limited understanding of the perceptions of young drivers regarding police enforcement of road laws. The paper aims to address this gap. Design/methodology/approach Within this study 238 young drivers from Queensland, Australia, aged 17-24 years (M=18, SD=1.54), with a provisional (intermediate) driver’s licence completed an online survey regarding their perceptions of police enforcement and their driver thrill-seeking tendencies. This study considered whether these factors influenced self-reported transient (e.g. traveling speed) and fixed (e.g. blood alcohol concentration) road violations by the young drivers. Findings The results indicate that being detected by police for a traffic offence, and the frequency with which they display P-plates on their vehicle to indicate their licence status, are associated with both self-reported transient and fixed rule violations. Licence type, police avoidance behaviors and driver thrill seeking affected transient rule violations only, while perceptions of police enforcement affected fixed rule violations only. Practical implications This study suggests that police enforcement of young driver violations of traffic laws may not be as effective as expected and that the authors need to improve the way in which police enforce road laws for young novice drivers. Originality/value This paper identifies that perceptions of police enforcement by young drivers does not influence all types of road offences.

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