Persistent Traffic Offenders: Alcohol Consumption and Personality as Predictors of Driving Disqualification

Abstract

Traffic safety is an important social problem. Many accidents are due to non-compliance with traffic regulations. Serious or repeated offenses are sanctioned with penalty points or court conviction, and sanctions can lead to disqualification from driving. This paper explores the relevance of alcohol consumption and personality factors as predictors of driving disqualification. The aim of the study is to determine whether the behaviors of persistent offenders and their propensity for law-breaking are related to their characteristics and patterns of drinking. A sample of 358 drivers participated in the study: 126 non-offender habitual drivers and 232 persistent traffic offenders disqualified from driving for serious or repeated traffic offenses, 127 of them after conviction, 105 without conviction (by accumulation of penalties). Participants were given a battery of tests measuring a set of explanatory personality and alcohol consumption factors. We used a crosssectional study design and performed statistical analysis of variance and regression searching for differences among the groups. The results reveal group effects, with significant differences in a number of factors between traffic offenders and non-offenders, and between both categories of offenders in a number of variables, including traffic violations that lead to demerit points and/or loss of a driver's license and crash involvement. Certain variables, including problem drinking, high levels of activity or excitement, penchant for thrill or sensation seeking, and propensity to hostility while driving, can accurately predict group membership. Alcohol disorders are the best predictors of disqualification from driving for serious or repeat traffic offenses, both penalized and convicted.

Well-being, behavioral patterns and cycling crashes of different age groups in Latin America: Are aging adults the safest cyclists?

“…First of all, in the present study young cyclists presented a major latent risk, based on both their behavioral patterns and their self-reported cycling crashes suffered during the past few years ( M = .89). In accordance, similar researches have described how age decreases behavioral risks among cyclists [39]; also, other studies involving other types of road users, especially motor-vehicle drivers, have found hazardous trends in terms of risky road behaviors [40–42], low risk perception [43,44] and a scarce knowledge of traffic norms [45–47] among young people, especially those under 25. In this regard, most studies dealing with young drivers have remarked that young road users constitute a crucial focus to address in road safety interventions [48].…”

Job stress and emotional exhaustion at work in Spanish workers: Does unhealthy work affect the decision to drive?

“…Regarding the existing evidence in the working population, EEW has already been related to different adverse health consequences such as: depressive and anxious disorders [26,27], systematic headaches [28], a greater Odds Ratio (OR) for developing hypertension [29] gastrointestinal diseases [30], musculoskeletal disorders [28], acute/chronic fatigue [31,32], numerous sleep problems [33][34][35], and a lower performance at work, in comparison to workforce groups that, on the other hand, have not reported burnout symptoms [36,37]. Empirically, some studies have found that burnout-related issues, such as EEW, may explain higher rates of job absenteeism and consistent turnover rates of workers [6,38,39], including the case of professional drivers, whose stressful work environment and role conflicts seem to be closely related to the appearance and prevalence of burnout-related symptomatology and other negative occupational and health outcomes [40,41].…”

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Personality traits and risky behavior among motorcyclists: An exploratory study

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