Citation

Brody L. Highw. Res. Board bull. 1957; 152: 1-2.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1957, National Research Council (U.S.A.), Highway Research Board)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The New Jersey Accident Prevention Clinic was set up by the division of motor vehicles to: (1) test and examine poor drivers of various types, as indicated by new jersey's point system and other data, (2) identify personal characteristics associated with their driving records, and (3) inform the drivers examined of any important deficiencies noted. In more than two and one-half years of operation, well over five thousand referrals were interviewed and tested at the clinic. For justifiable conclusions, it was necessary to equate the accident repeaters, chronic violators, and control subjects with good driving records with respect to driving exposure, education, and income, and to control for age differences, so that any significant test findings might be attributed to basic differences between the groups rather than to the variables mentioned. Three general conclusions are drawn from these findings: (1) the problem of safe, lawful, and courteous driving is primarily a problem of emotional makeup and social adequacy, (2) with regard to the psychological factors noted, other research studies indicate that the following specific characteristics tend to be evidenced by chronic violators and accident repeaters: They are apt to be aggressive and intolerant of others, and they tend to resent authority, and are inclined to have an exaggerated opinion of their importance and their abilities, and (3) while the general importance of personal adjustments and personality trends are indicated, no specific tests can be recommended for screening drivers for licensing purposes or in driver reexamination.