1 A comprehensive investigation of the risky driving behaviour of young novice drivers Presenter: Bridie Scott-Parker, PhD Candidate (Prof Barry Watson, Dr Mark King, Dr Melissa Hyde) Directions in Road Safety Research, Brisbane,18-19 June 2012

Queensland, % of all persons killed in car crashes years (12% of the state’s population) Queensland, 1 July 2004 – 30 June 2009 The young driver was at fault in 81% of fatality and 72% of hospitalisation crashes Cost of crashes? Extent of the Problem

Years after licensing No. drivers in casualty crashes Provisional licence phase Learner licence phase Open licence phase Source: Queensland Government, 2005 Casualty Crash Involvement in Queensland by Licence Type

My PhD Research Program Study 1: Inform the development of the survey instrument for Studies 2 and 3 Study 1A: State-wide sample of young novice drivers N = 761, attending a tertiary institution,17-25 years old, Provisional licence Online questionnaire exploring driving attitudes and behaviours Study 1B: Small group and individual interviews in a local shopping centre N = 21, years old, Learner or Provisional driver’s licence Questions exploring influence of parents, peers, and Police on risky driving (imitation, punishments, rewards)

My PhD Research Program Study 2: What is happening in the pre-Licence and Learner phase? Recruited across Queensland as novices progressed from Learner to Provisional 1 driver’s licence; N = 1170 (17-25 years) Online or paper questionnaire Study 3: What is happening during the first six months of the Provisional 1 licence? All participants from Study 2 invited to participate Online or paper questionnaire N = 390

Theoretical Framework Bandura’s Reciprocal Determinism Model Environment Person Behaviour

How do we measure it? Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale (BYNDS) 1.Transient violations 13 items, e.g., speeding, handheld mobile phone 2.Fixed violations 10 items, e.g., drink driving, carry more passengers than can fit in car 3.Misjudgement 9 items, e.g., misjudging speed of oncoming vehicle, missed exit 4.Risky driving exposure 9 items, e.g., driving tired, carrying friends at night 5.Driver mood 3 items, e.g., drive faster if in a bad mood Key findings: Behaviour

Pre-Licence drivers (12%) continue risky driving Most Learners and Provisional 1 (P1) drivers compliant with general and GDL-specific road rules (e.g., night driving, alcohol) 78% of P1 drivers have their own car within 6 months of licensure; risky driving, offences 8 Self-reported speedingLearnersProvisional < 10 km/hr69%80% km/hr32%50% > 20 km/hr13%24%

Key findings: Person Socio-demographics Age (younger more speeding, older more difficulty as Learners) Gender (males consistently more risky) Ethnicity (not born in Australia/don’t speak English as main language at home more pre-Licence driving, inaccuracy) Rurality (more avoidance of Police in rural areas) Car ownership (owners more risky) Employment status (employed more risky) Relationship status (partner more pre-licence driving, unsupervised Learner driving, speeding) Study status (not studying more pre-Licence driving /car) 9

Key findings: Person Psychological traits/states Sensitivity to rewards and punishments Sensitivity to punishment subsumed within influence of anxiety and depression (not considered any further) Males report greater reward sensitivity Sensation seeking propensity Separate influence to reward sensitivity Males report greater sensation seeking propensity Psychological distress Females report greater anxiety and depression All three variables were significant predictors of self- reported risky driving and of speeding specifically 10

Enhanced-GDL Average of 110 hours recorded in logbook Average of 92 hours actual driving practice (89.2 hours with parents/friends; 9.7 hours with professional) Most logbooks accurate (13% ‘rounded’, 4% extra) Comparison to Learners in former-GDL program Longer Learner period (12.4 months, now 16.5 months) More Learner driving practice (63 hours, now 108 hours) No change in age to Provisional licence (both17.5 years) Less difficulty getting practice (from 35% to 23%) Less unsupervised driving (from 17% to 10%) Fewer crashes and offences Key findings: Environment (Structural)

Key findings: Environment (Social) Parents and peers were models ‘Punishment’ dependent upon outcome (‘bad’ vs ‘not bad’) Parents Some facilitated punishment avoidance ( riskier novice driving) Some low-quality supervision of Learner driving Peers Likely to encourage and to reward risky behaviour Can effectively punish/ discourage risky behaviour but unlikely to do so (‘older friends would, same age would not’) Police Punishment avoidance (e.g., talk out of ticket) perceived as reward ‘Targeting’ novice drivers decreased novice plate compliance Active avoiders of on-road presence more risky (e.g., speeding)

Future Research Pre-Licence through Provisional 2 period Pre-Licence driving, unsupervised driving ‘Readiness’ for licensure Learner practice characteristics, supervision when risky Behaviours and attitudes, psychosocial influences Distraction, driving purpose, own car Punishment avoidance Long-term impacts of GDL changes BYNDS (Refinement /validation; international application) Trial interventions in Queensland context (Feedback devices; Checkpoints program; ‘Structured’ Learner period) ‘Problem young driver’ (Develop/ trial interventions)

Mark your Diaries! International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety Conference (T2013) August 2013, Brisbane Registrations Open 5 March Mark your diaries! Occupational Safety in Transport Conference (2012) September 2012, Gold Coast Questions? Contact Details: Bridie Scott-Parker, PhD Candidate