21% of young male drivers have raced cars on roads
Research has shown that one in five male motorists aged 17-24 confessed they had raced another driver at some point.
The study conducted on the psychology of risky driving behaviour by Dr Kiran Sarma, a lecturer in psychology at NUI Galway, also revealed that young male motorists are more likely to engage in frequent speeding, reckless driving and using mobile phones when driving than other road users.
The findings of the study involving about 1,500 motorists were revealed at a conference in Dublin yesterday to mark the start of Irish Road Safety Week.
The survey showed that 21% of young male drivers said they had raced on the public road with other vehicles, compared to 10% for older males, 7% for young females and 2% for older females.
Young male drivers also scored the highest percentage for the category of motorist who thought it acceptable to break the speed limit to overtake and to drive through amber lights.
Dr Sarma said young male drivers were the most over-represented group in road fatalities. He claimed the group’s propensity to engage in risky driving behaviour such as speeding was linked to their positive attitude towards speed as well as personality traits like impulsiveness and excitement-seeking.
Dr Sarma highlighted how biological studies had also shown that the part of the brain which involves risk assessment is not fully developed in most adults until after the age of 25.
As a result, he claimed many young motorists tended to overestimate their own capability as a driver, while their attitude to speed was also influenced by their friends and family.
“The research would suggest that addressing speeding attitudes is important but that deeper psychological factors are also linked to dangerous driving on our roads,” he said.
The chief executive of the Road Safety Authority, Noel Brett, pointed out that 5,678 road users aged 17-24 were killed or seriously injured on Irish roads between 1997 and 2009.
Mr Brett also stressed the importance of not demonising all young drivers as he pointed out the vast majority were careful, law-abiding motorists.
