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Wednesday, October 13, 1999
Subject: Road Rage
Dear Dr. Driving:
My name is Michael and I am a senior at Henderson
State University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. I am doing a study for my senior research on
road rage. My study's main focus is what interpersonal and nonverbal communication takes
place before the development of road rage. I am trying to gather as much knowledge and
information as possible. If you have any information that could help with this study I
would deeply appreciate it. Thank you for your time. -- Michael
----------------------------
Thursday, October 14, 1999
Subject: Fact-check for Men's Health
Dear Dr. Driving:
Following is information which I am fact-checking before we publish
it in an upcoming issue of Men's Health (per your conversation with one of our writers).
If you could please look over the paragraph and let me know as soon as possible if there
are any corrections or changes I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks for your help and I
look forward to hearing from you! -- S.
Material:
Why is everyone driving SUVs? It's not
that we have to cross river beds to get to
work. Yet, sports utes are the fastest growing segment of the auto market since 1994, and
account for about a fifth of the total market. Social
psychologist Leon James, Ph.D.,
University of Hawaii, Alias "Dr. Driving," thinks it's all about control.
"They're big and you're sitting higher, and you command over those who sit below
you." People like the height, and surveys rate driver seat visibility as high as
comfort and performance, when shopping for a car. Call it "automotive
Darwinism," but we believe that even on the road it's survival of the fittest. The
higher we are, the safer we think it is for us.
----------------------------
Thursday, October 14, 1999
Subject: not hardly
Dear Dr. Driving:
That is some poor
reasoning and only tells part of what's taught. Only by expecting
other drivers to do it wrong can you be prepared to cope safely and
smoothly with their actions. If they do surprise you it's for the
good and no allowances are necessary on your part and you have lost
nothing. Not only have I driven 4 million accident free miles, BUT
accidents don't seem to happen around me. I think that's pretty
amazing considering I have spent the majority of the last 27 years
on the roads either driving a truck or teaching someone else to or
teaching people to drive safely around them. I generally drive as
fast as I think it is safe to go. This keeps you paying attention at
all times to everything around you, trying to anticipate what can
happen before it does and decide before hand what you will do, where
your "out" is before you need it. This may result in driving less
than the posted speed limit, if that is what is safe. I haven't had
a ticket I earned in over 20 years and only one I did not back in
'83. This works, in all kind of vehicles in all kinds of traffic,
with the proper driving skills, a courteous attitude and a desire to
see no one die out there. -- Ms. B
Friday, October 15, 1999
Dear Ms. B: Thanks for your letter, I appreciate it. I entirely agree with your
idea of driving with alertness and compassion! That is my ideal too. I guess we have a
little semantic disagreement about calling this "defensive" or something else.
The reason "defensive" is not preferable is because it is close to
"offensive" in the sense of creating suspicion in advance and a tendency to see
other drivers as enemies. This is a disadvantage of the word and idea
"defensive" as it has been used and practiced. Also, defensive doesn't encourage
mutual support and compassion. The compassion you said you added to it, is your own
addition, it is not part of "defensive." I would prefer supportive driving as an
idea and then part of it would relate to anticipation, which is a term you used. Maybe
Anticipation Driving or something like that. This is better than defensive because it
lacks suspiciousness and hostility, and yet if focuses on what you said is critical: To be
alert so you can anticipate so you can correct in time and avoid. What do you think?
DrDriving
----------------------------
Thursday, October 14, 1999
Subject: prevention
Dear Dr. Driving:
Can be as simple as
changing our expectations of other drivers. I always taught my
students to expect the other driver to always do the wrong thing,
this act alone seems to usually prevent anger because one the driver
is not surprised and scared by the close call that follows and
unexpected maneuver, and anger usually follows fear. Two, it can
become a challenge to anticipate their wrong actions and be prepared
and therefore safe and unruffled. I am amazed that people still
drive with the assumption that the other driver IS GOING TO DO WHAT
THEY SHOULD, sure leave you flat footed when they don't . . . -- Ms.
B
----------------------------
Thursday, October 14, 1999
Subject: Requesting Information
Dear Dr. Driving:
Greetings: I am a Deputy Sheriff with the Bourbon County Sheriff's
Department in Fort Scott, Kansas; working on my Bachelor's degree with the goals on
obtaining my Master's degree. I am working on a research paper at this present time. The
topic of the research paper is Road Rage. To obtain the content of the paper we are to
review abstracts from Academic Journals. By surfing the internet I came across your name
on several entries. I am having difficulties obtaining any information on this topic. Do
you have any ideas of where I can obtain this information? Your help will be highly
appreciative. -- B. Martin S-3, Deputy Sheriff, Bourbon County Sheriff's Department
Friday, October 15, 1999
Dear Sheriff M:
You can consult
this file of Academic References on Drivers, Road
Rage, etc.
Also, you can consult the ERIC DATABASE (look up in a search engine). Good luck. Please
write back if you need more consultations.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Friday, October 15, 1999
Subject: Request to use materials
Dear Dr. Driving:
I am requesting permission to use
DrDriving's CARRworkbook and its
Driving Awareness Forms and Activities. -- Rick
Dear Rick:
With respect to your request below, I need for you to explain what you're
going to use it for, with who, which parts, and how many copies. When I get the details, I
shall respond. Thanks.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Friday, October 15 1999
Subject: Links broken and other
Dear Dr. Driving:
I took
one of the surveys yesterday and found some questions ambiguous. For example,
one was something like, "If everyone drove friendly, do you think the world would be
a better place? Will this happen?"
I was torn between my eternal pessimism and my preference to try to practice what you
preach. There will always be assholes. I try not to be among them, but they will always be
there.
I also haven't found anything that mentions
motorcycling. I have many friends who ride
motorcycles and have done so for many years. We all firmly believe that surviving cyclists
(as opposed to the others) have a finely developed sense of ESP so that we see things
developing in traffic far ahead of others. It might be interesting to study whether such
survival is simple Darwinian statistics or whether the cycle is a stimulus to greatly
developed avoidance due to vulnerability. On the other hand, the new cyclist is tempted to
aggression by the sheer performance of the machine. Some learn the hard way that they are
mistaken.
Will send some other material from another machine. You might find it amusing.
Good Site! Good
Cause! -- R.M.
Dear Mr.
M.: Great list! Do you want me to post it? Is there a Reference?
Thanks for your trouble. Please respond.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Friday, October 15, 1999
Subject: I Need Help
Dear Dr. Driving:
My name is Paul and I am a senior at Garinger High School in
Charlotte, NC. I am writing my Senior Exit Essay on road rage. I am trying to prove that
road rage is a habit acquired in child hood...but the only info I have found is what you
wrote in your testimony to the US Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and
Infrastructrual Hearings. I am writing this letter in request of any information you might
have on this subject. Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated. --
Respectfully, Paul
Dear Paul:
I don't know of research showing the connection between road rage and
childhood--it's obvious to me but think of what kind of research would be able to prove
it! Maybe that should be part of your essay, I think. What kind of proof are you expecting
or can you expect?? There is a study in Central Michigan University I saw somewhere on the
Web today showing that when you ask people who have road rage where they got it from, the
majority say from their parents. Is this proof?? I have some evidence like this
too--asking people about their aggressive driving and what they can remember about their
parents. You can see the article and data here:
http://DrDriving.org/surveys/
DrDriving
----------------------------
Friday, October 15, 1999
Subject: Help for victims
Dear Dr. Driving: I am sure your readers will appreciate this story.
The cure for ROAD RAGE! I drive to work each day in a medium size city. Everyday I
could count on, at least, two tailgaters; some of these were quite threatening. 60 miles
an hour isn't fast enough for these mad fools. If I go any faster, it's unsafe and I could
get an expensive ticket. Then, one day I saw an ad for a security camera / recorder called
"AutoCam". The address is:
http://www.bctonline.com/users/macrohard
I got the low cost model ($69.00), installed it, and WHAT a difference. NO more
tailgaters! The camera mounts in the rear window in plain view of the on coming driver.
They see the flashing red light, then the camera, and then read the accompanying window
sticker that says "SMILE you're on AUTOCAM". Within 3 minutes the tailgater /
troublemaker slows down or falls back at least 3 car lengths, realizing that his every
move and license plate number is caught on tape.
It's incredible, everyone wants to see the tape, the police, judges, the press, TV news
and TV shows. It may even lower your insurance cost. This is the video system that has
been shown on TV as a new product to stop road rage. The more cameras that are out there,
the safer we will all be. So join the team and get your camera today. It really works! --
macrohard
Saturday, October 16, 1999
Dear macrohard: Thanks for the AUTOCAM info. I'll check it out. It's astonishing to
think that soon most cars might have these...Sure will change things on highways.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Friday, October 15, 1999
Subject: story
Dear Dr. Driving:
Hello. Tracked you down after reading about you in a WSJ reference.
We are AAA New York's magazine, and I would like to review some of your materials. If I
provide you with a fed ex # for free postage, would you send me what you have? --
Sincerely, C. K, Assistant Editor Car & Travel Monthly
Monday, October 18, 1999
Dear C. : Just let me know what you want from my site.
Photos
available here.
RoadRageous Video Tape and Course available here:
http://www.aipsnews.com/
DrDriving
----------------------------
Saturday, October 16, 1999
Subject: Driving and using e-mail
Dear Dr. Driving:
First of all, I would like to identify myself before asking you
several important issues with regard to driving and using an email system simultaneously.
I am an engineering student at the University of Toronto (Canada) and am currently taking
a course in Human-Centered System Design. Currently, I am conducting a research project
which involves using an email system while driving on the road. Matters of significant
interests to me are the psychology of driving, sources of distraction (diverging
attention) and the management of attention suitable for driving while using an email
system.
I would like to ask you the following questions:
How much attention driver has to give in order to drive safely?
Will the use of sound activated email system divert the driver's attention significantly?
If so, to what degree and what are the possible ways to divide the attention to both
activities (driving and using email) ?
What kind of interfaces are appropriate for the email system?
What kind of affordances, constraints and mappings should the system have?
How is this email system compared to the use of cellular phones while driving, with
respect to safety, attention, and responsiveness?
Thank you for reading this email and addressing my concerns. -- Sincerely, H.T.
Dear Mr. T: The questions you ask about attention management of drivers with e-mail
are the issues we indeed need to find out about, and I don't think the answers are known.
I hope you go forward with your investigation.
Perhaps you can share with me what sort of design you might be trying. Of course
sub-task analysis on various types of simulation data is a logical step to identify the
factors that should be monitored in actual driving. So the final step of this
investigation should therefore be data from actual driving trips.
One further
suggestion: In terms of dependent measures involving errors,
accuracy, steadiness, etc., one should always use measures in all
three behavioral systems of a driver: affective, cognitive, and
sensorimotor. These distinctions are explained in
this CHART.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Saturday, October 16, 1999
Subject: doctororganic.com / Threestep
Dear Dr. Driving:
I was wondering if you could check out my article on driving. It's at
my website www.doctororganic.com
. In the opinions area titled, THE ART AND ZEN OF DRIVING.
Thanks, and let me know what you think. -- Matthew
Dear Matthew:
Thanks for letting me see your article on the Zen of Driving. Excellent!
You're doing what I advise all drivers: the
Threestep Program:
acknowledge you need to change the way you drive
witness yourself while driving (like you're doing)
modify one step at a type and recycle the last two steps.
I recommend you look at at delightful little book called The Zen of Driving by Steve
Berger (Bantam books--probably Amazon.com can find a copy).
By the way, you can
link to my site from your article, if you want people to read more
about the
Threestep Program.
DrDriving
Thursday, November 5, 1999
Subject: Re: Threestep
Dear Dr. Driving:
I put your link on the driving article of
www.doctororganic.com. Can you
provide me with a reciprocal link? If so, I have provided you with an image. -- Matthew
----------------------------
Sunday, October 17, 1999
Subject: Medstar credit
Dear Dr. Driving: Thank you for crediting Medstar on your homepage list of interviews!
I'd like to let you know about one thing...and request another.
First, if you'd like to link to a transcript of the story you were featured in, check
out "Medstar.com", our new web page...which is just getting started. The search
engine and other properties aren't working yet, but you can find the transcript, and our
research summary, if you click on the "Medical News Clients Only" section, and
then click on the 'archive'...and look under 'Mental Health".
Secondly, you list the story as "a Bill Flood" production, which would be
wonderful...if it were true. In fact, while I developed the idea and did some initial
research, the production was all Diana's. She gathered all the information and boiled it
down into something both entertaining and educational. She did much more than just
interview you! So, take my name off, and leave Diana's up, the next time you update your
media listings.
Many thanks--I hope you enjoyed working with Medstar. -- B.
F, Managing Editor,
Medical News
Dear Mr. F: Thanks for the correction and the link for the transcript--it's been
updated.
By the way, our book Road Rage and Aggressive Driving will be published by Prometheus
Books in September 2000. Our RoadRageous video tape and course by AIPS is now on the
market (http://aipsnews.com). And my latest Web site is on Air Rage, a new specialty I'm
building now. Perhaps one day MEDSTAR might do a piece on air rage as it is becoming more
widespread. My new site is at:
http://DrDriving.org/rages/index.htm
Take care, and thanks again.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Monday, October 18, 1999
Subject: courtesy first
Dear Dr. Driving: I do like anticipation driving. I never looked at defensive driving
as anything but being prepared and never got any feedback that anyone else did, so its
news to me. I taught less than 10 years so I don't claim to know everything. Someone
somewhere taught you differently, but I see nothing wrong with your term especially as I
always knew that common [uncommon actually] courtesy would eliminate most crashes even
without increased driving skills, they would drop 50%. But you don't need to perpetuate
your, maybe not so wildly shared, connotation of the word. It does not help since so many
professional and trained drivers see it as just the opposite. Your energy would be better
placed elsewhere. Adding in your term and reasons it is good, not what is wrong with the
other term would better benefit everyone. If all of us that care or know spent all our
energy on teaching positive skills and attitudes we still wouldn't be enough, so we have
nothing we can spare is my point. Have a great day. -- Daren
----------------------------
Monday, October 18, 1999
Subject: Male sex roles and drunk driving
Dear Dr. Driving: I am a health educator in Canada, and I am giving a seminar at a
Teens Against Drunk Driving Conference on male sex roles and their contribution to drunk
driving. Can you suggest any articles, quisize="3es, videos, etc. I tried clicking on the
student's list of Drivers Behaving Badly- e.g., car chases etc in movies, but I couldn't
get it (wrong URL). Any websites, writers, about what cars and driving mean to men
(besides a way of getting from A to B).
Do you have any other suggestions? -- J.A.
L, Communications Coordinator, Canadian
Mental Health Association, Ontario Division
Dear Ms. L: I need more specifics on what you're looking for. For instance, have
you checked these two:
http://www.dogpile.com
a search engine that queries a dozen other search engines so you
have a variety of results. There are a lot of statistics on drunk driving you'll find, and
many of them give gender information and age, etc.
ERIC database in most academic libraries, but also online through the Web. Then if you
find reports or journal articles, they can be obtained by fax by your library services.
If you have already explored these types of sources then what did you not find you still
want? Once you answer this, I can pursue it from there. Please feel free to write back,
and thank you for consulting me.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 19, 1999
Subject: a basic plan for my project
Dear Dr. Driving:
I was thinking what my project is going to be, and I am quite
interested in a behavior of motorcyclists, who are not like "easy rider" rather
speed freaks!
A main point of my project is focusing on a relationship between their personality and
their behavior when they ride on the toy. Also, I am interested in the behavior when they
drive a car. I think they have a car for usual occasion, and drive it everyday.
My assumption is that when they ride on the toy for fun, they do not think about the
other users or somewhat...on the contrary, they might drive a car like the other drivers
do And their personality is a bit aggressive compared to Mr. average.
I will employ 3 questionnaires
personality test
self-measured questionnaire (on the bike)
self-measured questionnaire (on the car)
Is this a fine project or anything else.....
Please give me a comment on this. Yours sincerely, Shojiro
P.S. I cannot wear an aloha when I drive 'cause the weather is really but it is like
rainy day is everyday, and my car does not have a roof.
Dear, S:
I think your plan is good, but you could use one more dependent
measure: I wonder if the riders could tape record themselves by wearing a head speaker
connected to a portable tape recorder--or would there be too much background noise? It's
worth trying out to see if this would work. Of course it does work in a car. And instead
of a tape recorder, it could be a cellular phone and the recording could be made at the
other end. And you only need samples of a few minutes on several trips by a few
individuals, both experienced and less experienced, both male and female, both young and
older--to the extent possible.
Once you have the recording you can
analyze it yourself and
get further data from the riders and drivers by letting them hear it and comment on (a)
what they meant and (b) what they feel and think about it now as they listen to it.
When the time comes, you can consult me about how to analyze the tapes, but basically it's
pretty much common sense, except you count things as well. You can consult this CHART
which will help you CATEGORIZE the statements they make on the tape.
http://DrDriving.org/articles/chart.htm
In the instructions to the riders or drivers, you can say to them: Just give a blow by
blow description of what's happening, what you're noticing, what you're thinking, what
emotions you feel, how you react to others or what you see, etc. Just keep talking,
keeping up a stream of talk, as if you're talking out loud everything your mind is doing
or thinking. -- Something like that. You understand?
The above data is immensely more powerful and convincing and direct in comparison to
the paper and pencil personality tests and surveys you can give them to fill out--all
these are INDIRECT measures of the cyclist's driver's thoughts and feelings.
What do you think?
By the way, are you a cyclist and a driver? Do you switch your thoughts and emotions
for the two situations?
DrDriving
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 19, 1999
Subject: CARR
By the way these links are very useful and
thought-provoking. I took some of the tests and learned I am aggressive (though never
actually violent). I plan to change. I would like to learn more about
CARR too. -- Debbie
Dear Debbie: Thanks for your kind comments. I fixed the link--thanks for telling me
(few people bother yet it's so important).
Write again after you
explore CARR and let me know if you get the impulse to want to do
something for the cause. Like forming a
Quality Driving Circle, or developing the Drivers Behaving Badly ratings for TV (you'll
see what I started in the CARRworkbook). And I'm glad you made the first step--A for
Acknowledging that you need to tone yourself down in aggressiveness (that happened to
me--which is how I became DrDriving--trying to tone down my being a Rushing Maniac--you'll
find my story if you explore the site further...).
See my Threestep
Program
here. Take care and write
back!
DrDriving
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 19, 1999
Subject: Some more thoughts and reflections
Dear Dr. Driving:
Since I came across your site(s) a few days ago I've been reviewing
my own driving and how I came to drive the way I do. The short conclusion seems to be that
I spent thousands of hours watching my parents drive. I think you could say that my
driving and that of my father are indistinguishable.
In some cases, this wouldn't be good. But in my case, it's something that seems to be
pretty workable. You see, my father flew Navy jets for a living and seems to have been
raised to see that hard work, good instruction, continuing improvement and mature behavior
are all important, positive things. He says that his attention to maintenance and
operation of the jets he flew are what kept him from having to jettison an aircraft on
many occasions. He taught me to drive with the same attitude and approach to machinery. In
fact, he was teaching me to fly light planes at the same time as driving. The methodical,
reasoned approach to flying can be of benefit in driving as well. I practically start the
car using a checklist! Perhaps my own Navy service, 5 years as a nuclear submariner, also
reinforced this behavior.
Anyway, I don't know how much of my driving success to attribute to family environment,
early training, and my own personality. But I suspect that starting life with the goal of
operating machinery smoothly, safely, and increasingly skillfully is a positive approach.
It's the one you wish your airline captain is taking. It's the one you want your 18wheel
driver taking. It's the one you want your kids taking.
Is it possible that we are so horrible as a nation because driver licensing is so easy
to obtain that it's valueless and has no meaning? I worked far harder for my pilot's
license and subsequently my license to instruct. Could it be that some positive incentives
for skill and excellence would be the way to get folks to wake up and pay attention to
what they are doing?
I often wish that I could hire a professional driving instructor in order to obtain a
"checkup". But I figure that anybody who is actually doing driver instruction is
pretty much buried at the basic level working with new drivers. The kind of checkup I'm
thinking of has NO RELATION to the so-called "advanced driving schools" which
are really racing schools. I want to get better at the mind games on the road. I'm not
entirely confident that having been on the do-it-yourself plan for 25 years I will have
covered all the material.
OK, that's my ramble
for today. I suppose that some folks would regard zero accidents in
26 years and 250,000 mi as success but I keep getting the feeling
that I might have missed something...Best Wishes -- R.
Thursday, October 21, 1999
Dear Mr.
Rr: Thanks for the thoughts. There are several good ideas in your last
message. Yes, positive rewards for excellence--that's a possible plan for both government
and insurance industry, even greater rebates from manufacturers. The idea of constant
improvement of skills that you were taught by your father--very important and few drivers
realize that, or even want to right now. We need a complete overhaul of driver training
and what it means to be excellent.
Your desire to know more about your attitude and thinking behind the wheel is also very
healthy and positive. One method I used for years: carrying a tape recorder and recording
myself while I talk out loud whatever stream of thoughts and emotions I have behind the
wheel. When I listen--it's very revealing. I wonder if you would try it and write back
with the results.
You are an unsung hero. Our country needs lots of people like you. Take care!
Leon James
DrDriving
----------------------------
Wednesday, October 20, 1999
Subject: Sequence of road rage steps
Dear Dr. Driving: I would like to inform you that in your sequence of road rage steps,
the lady that caused the accident would not be charged with vehicular homicide because, a
person can only be guilty of homicide if they kill a person and by definition a baby must
be born in order to be a person. Therefore an unborn baby is not subject to the rights of
a person, and it is not homicide if an unborn baby is "killed". Sad but true! --
Brent
Tuesday, October 21, 1999
Dear Brent: ...
Which is why we were all surprised. This was the first legal case in any
county to invoke the vehicular manslaughter charge for an unborn child--and the woman was
convicted--but you'll need to check exactly what the conviction was.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Wednesday, October 20, 1999
Subject: statistics
Dear Dr. Driving:
I am impressed by the info on your website, but cannot get any of the
links to work. I like visual representations - any advice you can give would be
appreciated. Thanks -- Jim
Dear Jim: Thank you so much for letting me know--so few people do that! I fixed it, and
I hope you can get back to the document soon!
---------------------------
Thursday, October 21, 1999
Subject: paper on road rage
Dear Dr. Driving:
Hi, my name is Erin. I am doing a paper on speculating about causes
and I chose to do mine on Why we have road rage. I looked at everything on the web site,
but I was wondering if you happened to have anymore information that could be helpful in
my paper. If you don't that is okay. My paper is due Monday, but it is just a rough draft
so there is always room to add more. Thank you for your time. -- Erin
----------------------------
Thursday, October 21, 1999
Subject: Cause and Effect of Road Rage?
Dear Dr. Driving:
What is your opinion of the Cause and Effect of "Road
Rage?" -- AW
Dear AWi:
You'll find a complete answer to your question in
this document on my
site. Write back after you read it. Thanks.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Thursday, October 21, 1999
Subject: Road Rage Information
Dear Dr. Driving:
I have found on the internet you seem to be the expert on road rage.
I have been asked by my supervisors to give a presentation on road rage, mainly it's
impact in Hawaii. I was curious where I may be able to get more information about this
subject? Your web site is very informative, are there any brochures, flyers, or posters
that may be available to me and my audience. I am also located on Oahu. Any help would be
greatly appreciated. -- W. P III, CTM2, US Navy
Friday, October 22, 1999
Dear Mr. P: You might like to look around the dozens of documents I have--you
can use the search engine on my site. Perhaps you might like to start directly with an
"overview" article here:
http://DrDriving.org/articles/philosophy.htm and use the links
to go to other documents.
I might also mention a survey I did on Hawaii drivers (UH college students) and the
results here. I think you'll find plenty to
present to your audience. Once you know what might be suitable, just select that material
(for example a Table or a Test or some Paragraphs or a cartoon), give the Copy command and
then paste it into your Word processor. From there you can add things, etc. then print the
whole thing for your copy. All this is allowed as part of being on the Web.
If you want a handout also, just let me know what, when, for whom, I will give you
permission by return e-mail.
Feel free to write back after you've had a chance to explore.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Friday, October 22, 1999
Subject: Road rage protection
Dear Dr. Driving:
Hello my name is Gwen and I am doing an expository research essay on
Road rage and how to protect yourself from becoming a victim. Do you have any specific
information on this? I need 2 credible book sources still and I am coming up with nothing
in my college library. Anything you could tell me would be greatly appreciated. Thanks --
Gwen
----------------------------
Friday, October 22, 1999
Subject: Road Rage
Dear Dr. Driving:
Allow me to introduce myself. I am a second year graduate student in
the field of clinical psychology (MA program). I have been currently been given a topic
that I found by searching the web is of great interest to you. Due to your vast experience
with the topic of road rage, I was wondering if you could lead me to some Journal Sources
where I might go to gather more information about the topic. Please keep in mind that our
data base is a medium size and that obscure journals are not carried by our library. To
give you some background, the paper is related to social concepts. I was thinking about
linking road rage to gender, norms, attribution theory, and maybe some social cognitive
ideas. At this point, any journal references would be helpful so that I may define the
concept better and develop my literature review. Thank you for your time. -- Cristen
Saturday, October 23, 1999
Dear Christen: Here are the three files where you'll find what you asked for:
For
Journal articles
For Gender differences:
http://DrDriving.org/articles/gender.htm
For social
attribution and schema formation
Good luck.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Friday, October 22, 1999
Subject: smart cars--ITS
Dear Dr. Driving:
FCC SETS ASIDE SMART DRIVING SPECTRUM The Federal Communications
Commission has allocated a portion of the radio spectrum for intelligent transportation
services, saying it hopes to jumpstart the development of technology for high-tech
highways. Such services could alert drivers to dangerous ice conditions, and could
encourage payment via electronic "tags" for parking and gas. (TechWeb 21 Oct 99)
http://www.techweb.com/wire/story/TWB19991921S0015
----------------------------
Sunday, October 24, 1999
Subject: interview
Dear Dr. Driving:
My name is Carrie and
I am a student of Bowling Green State University of Ohio. I have to
interview someone for my paper on road rage that I'm writing for my
English class. If you could please take a few minutes to answer my
questions I would really appreciate it. If not please let me know as
well. Thank you! -- Carrie
What are the most likely causes of road rage?
Why has it been increasing so rapidly over the past few years?
What group of people are the most likely perpetrators of road rage?
Who are the most likely victims?
How much impact do the media have in the increase of this trend?
Will road rage continue to rise in the future? Why or why not?
Does what a person drives effect how that person drives? Why or why not?
Dear Carrie: I can't take the time now. However, if it's allowed by your instructor, you
can find my answers to each question in the
articles I wrote. Then you can select a piece
for the answer--and that's almost like an interview. I would score it higher in fact,
because it's more work than just getting the answers from me. Good luck in convincing your
teacher, and let me know if you can't find the answers that fit--use the search engine on
my site to locate things.
Monday, October 25, 1999
Dear Dr. Driving:
Thank you. I'll ask my teacher if I can just quote your website. --
Carrie
----------------------------
Monday, October 25, 1999
Subject: Need pictures of road rage
Dear Dr. Driving:
I enjoyed your site and have gotten a lot of info for my term paper
due November 18, but I need pictures of road rage and cannot seem to find them. I am
hoping you can help me. If you have any could you please e-mail me, or at least point me
in the right direction? Thanks in advance. -- RLSPGB
Dear RLSPGB:
Some pictures can be
found here, and also, if you go to
the originals.
----------------------------
Monday, October 25, 1999
Subject: Not a firm believer. . .
Dear Dr. Driving: I would like to see somebody stand up and say, "A lot of road
rage can be eliminated if people would simply follow the law, and use common courtesy when
driving on the road."
For instance, if you're driving down the highway (we'll say four lane), and somebody is
driving slower than you in the passing lane, it's the law that you yield to the upcoming
traffic and merge your vehicle to the right. People don't seem to realize that this is the
law (in MI at least). People like to stare straight ahead with both hands on the wheel,
totally oblivious to what is going on around them. I don't know what you teach in your
corrective behavior classes, but I'll tell you what, when people don't pay attention to
traffic around them and decide they'll drive anyway they like with complete disregard to
other drivers on the road around them, I get very upset. I don't get upset to the point of
using my car as a battering ram, but it does get me hot under the collar.
Maybe you can enlighten me as to how you see people getting to the point of "Road
Rage" because I hear a lot about road rage on T.V., but nothing is ever said on how
to correct it, i.e. be respectful of your fellow commuters. Please advise. -- K. Hall
Dear Mr. Hall: You wrote: "I would like to see somebody stand up and say, "A
lot of road rage can be eliminated if people would simply follow the law, and use common
courtesy when driving on the road."
Mr. Hall, your wish has been fulfilled: I Placed your statement on my site (look at the
bottom) with an email button for people's comments. I agree with you. The problem is this:
Most drivers will not do this, and it won't work if you put them all in jail or fine
them--there'll be a rebellion. Therefore we must give people the tools to be able to
follow the law, and that means to respect the law. Few people can do what you have done,
if you succeed in following the law on all your trips.
Now here is one thing I'd like to raise from what you wrote: you express sentiments
similar to what I call automotive vigilantism--and that is against the law as well as
against the morality. So I'm wondering if you'd like to go into this some more. May I
suggest you start with filling out my 26-item questionnaire that lists the common things
vigilantism makes you do, think, or feel.
----------------------------
Monday, October 25, 1999
Subject: Re: Some more thoughts and reflections
Dear Dr. Driving: Boy, if I'd tape recorded myself during the 3 days I was traveling in
Fremont, CA. I'd have learned a lot. Compared to my usual routes, it was dense and fast
traffic. Combine that with not knowing exactly how and when to turn and it makes for
stress. I wish I'd had a sign in the back window saying "I'm not being stupid, I've
just never been here before!"
My wife had a thought for an article she "someday" might write. She thinks it
would be useful to advise young women to judge the driving of the men they date. After
all, if it progresses to marriage, you'll be riding with this guy for 40 or 50 years. Not
only might your lifespan be determined by how he drives but your children's survival and
THEIR driving habits will be determined by how this guy drives. Sort of puts a whole
different spin on how girls ought to look at the 18-year-old guys who drive new Trans Ams,
doesn't it? - R. Miller
Dear Mr. Miller: You always write messages that are so quotable I feel like putting
them in my book!! Your wife's observation is brilliant indeed!
This one I shall quote anonymously--it's great: " I wish I'd had a sign in the
back window saying "I'm not being stupid, I've just never been here before!"
----------------------------
Monday, October 25, 1999
Subject: Re: Some more thoughts and reflections
Dear Dr. Driving: Seems to be a family trait that we try to encapsulate significant
thoughts with recallable stories. :-)
You might be amused to know that my favorite saying is - "Experience is what you
get when you were expecting something else." This seems to apply to SO MANY things!
I'm sure my wife would be flattered if you somehow incorporated her thoughts about
spouses' driving in your courses. While it's kind of gender-biased, it does reflect the
truth of how most of us live (gender roles happen anyway).
Feel free to use any of the thoughts or material as your own. Just don't make a $M
without sharing :-) -- R. Miller
"Old enough to know better but young enough to do it anyway."
----------------------------
Monday, October 25, 1999
Subject: From your leon.html File
Dear Dr. Driving:
I'm heavily involved with a neighborhood traffic calming effort which
has focused heavily on enforcement and engineering but limited to use of radar trailer for
education. When recently informed that many of the speeders on our collector road come
directly from our own neighborhood, we decided to look closer at educational
opportunities.
My recent discovery of your Web site has opened up both new educational directions and
resources to support them. I would appreciate a catalogue of your varied resources. Also
of interest are any agencies which may be distributing your materials free of charge, or
for a rental fee. Thanks. -- E.
Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Dear Mr.
E: Thanks for your interest. I don't have a directory of available
materials because all the materials I publish on the Web are for free use by individuals
for study and education. For commercial use, or where there's payment for materials or
services using the materials, written permission is required, after mutual agreement is
reached.
You can explore the
hundreds of files on
my site and put
those you want into a list of addresses, then send it to me for
confirmation or publication.
There's also a search engine on my site. Typing in "traffic calming" gives 12
documents to look at (though they're but brief statements). Let me know what you think of
traffic calming and what the trend is. I'd like to have more on this on my site. One issue
that needs to be looked at is the "clash" between those who pass through and
those who live there. I'm wondering what kind of traffic calming devices enrage motorists
and try to evade them vs. those that are more acceptable. Are you aware of such a
distinction? I have not seen it mentioned by transportation engineers, but you can see
that a psychologist would think of that first!
DrDriving
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Subject: revised plan
Dear Dr. Driving: During this weekend, I totally revised my project, an outline of the
project is as below :
driving behavior and pleasure experience for motorcyclist
Subject: 20 male experience rider (least 5 years experience); 20 male inexperience
rider (less than 5 years experience)
method
there might be 3 questionnaires are employed
flow questionnaire : independent variable (see below)
personality test : dependent variable (see below)
driving behavior questionnaire : dependent variable (see below)
Independent variable: flow questionnaire, which would measure 8 dimensions of flow as
below:
intense involvement
clarity of goals and feedback
transcendence of self
lack of self-consciousness
loss of a sense of time
intrinsically rewarding experience
balance between skill and challenge
deep concentration
*see Csikszentmihalyi, M (1998) "the flow experience and its significance for human
psychology in optimal experience, psychological studies of flow in consciousness
Dependent variable (1): personality test, which would measure aggressiveness and moral
of the subjects
Dependent variable (2): driving attitude questionnaire, which measures how the subjects
rage on the road
Dependent variable (?): their experience range might affect the independent variable
(flow)
This was an actual design of my proposal project, and it has been banned by me by some
reasons, but I felt this would be a great project for me
Do you think this is a good project design or ? Please give me a comment on the project
design. I do not know which one should be the independent variable, the "flow"
or driving attitude? -- Shojiro
P.S. Can you believe that a toy of the subjects could reach 100m/h in 64 sec from 0.
Wearing crash helmet slash information of perception that I felt.
Dear Mr. S: Your project is good and the design is adequate. It doesn't make a
difference which is the DV and which the IV--you can do either, then switch. This is
because this design is semi-experimental or correlational, though it allows you to
"pretend" by arbitrarily (or theoretically) assign one variable as the DV and
another as the IV, and then do an ANOVA test between the sub-means.
In order to do a "true" experiment, you must designate the IV in advance,
then use random assignment to put subjects into the different IV conditions (treatment
conditions).
In terms of your DVs, you can use some of my tests if you like.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Subject: your comments
Dear Kevin: Thanks for your comments on the survey and the mistake you caught. I agree
with you that we "experts" need to shift our focus to cover the drivers who are
a source of irritation by the way they drive (seemingly unaware or uncaring).
One suggestion I have is that IN THE MEANTIME drivers need to learn how not to let
these uncaring or careless drivers upset you. Why give them the power to upset you? I
discovered that it's possible to reduce the intensity of our emotions, despite those
drivers. And I think it's desirable to do so. So, I basically agree with you but I
recommend you work on your own passion against those people.
Which is why the survey you filled out could be of help by leading you to examine the
basis of that intensity. Please go to this file where I discuss the survey and it will
lead you to the larger survey (takes much longer to fill out). But it will again lead you
to the thought process and emotions we have that need to be trained better (no matter what
those other drivers are doing!!!). (see
here)
I hope you write back after you see these other articles and surveys. Since you're also
an expert at this (by daily experience for years), it would be useful if you could make up
various items I can add to the survey, or else make a new one, that would help me bring
out more awareness of the problem you see from your perspective--which is shared by many
many other motorists.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Subject: Help please: "Tab's no drug week info"
Dear Dr. Driving: My school is having their NO DRUG WEEK and I was wondering is you
being police associated, could help me find out drug info like what the fines are for
doing certain drugs. Stuff like that, if I turn this info in to my class my teacher said
she would like it. -- Tabitha
Dear Tabitha: Check this file for the information you want:
http://www.drugsmartusa.com/
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Subject: Help! Road Rage Info Needed
Dear Dr. Driving: I'm currently doing a research report on road rage, and I could use
your help. I've found a tremendous amount of information on the psychology of adult road
ragers, but very little on college students. Can you please provide me with any
information you have regarding this, if any. -- JP2U
Dear JP2U: My
students have done a number of reports on their own aggressive
driving. Please survey this
directory.
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Subject: Your online study of road rage
Dear Dr. Driving: I am a Social Psychology student and a sophomore at Whitworth College
in Spokane, Washington. I was wondering if it would be possible to use some of your
questions on your road rage survey for a small class project I am doing on road rage.
Please email me back, if you have time, with your answer and any other information you
think I would need on your survey. -- Maggie
Dear Maggie: Permission granted for the request below. I recommend that after they fill
it out, you let them score it by going through each item and discussing why it's good or
bad. (or some of the items...)
DrDriving
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Subject: Unhappy airline passengers
Dear Dr. Driving: At the bottom of your page you have a chart entitled: "unhappy
airline passengers". Are these numbers representing one particular airline? All in
the states? World wide? Thanks a lot! -- Amanda
Dear Amanda: The bottom of the chart specifies the source of the information as the
U.S. Dept. of Transportation. From this I conclude that these are annual numbers for the
U.S.
----------------------------
Tuesday, October 26, 1999
Subject: air rage
Dear Dr. Driving: My name is Denise. I am a mature psychology student gathering
information for my dissertation. I am interested in this relatively new phenomenon 'air
rage.' However, I am finding it difficult to find any academic studies which have been
carried out. I would be grateful for any advice you may be able to offer, or if you could
point me in the right direction. I am specifically interested in the interaction between
flight attendants and potentially irate passengers. Thank you. -- Denise
Wednesday, October 27, 1999
Dear Denise: The only information I have is what's on my site.
----------------------------
Wednesday, October 27, 1999
Subject: road rage project: help needed
Dear Dr. Driving: I am a student at Vance High School and am writing my senior exit
project on road rage. I have visited your web site but still need much more information.
If you have any or know where I can receive some, it would be greatly appreciated. -- Ryan
Dear Ryan: Let me know what questions you want answered. If you don't know you need to
read some articles on my site first.
Thursday, November 4, 1999
Dear Dr. Driving: Hey, thanks for writing back to me. I don't have any specific
questions at the moment, but will definitely contact you later when I do. I need this
information for a senior exit project. I am doing it on road rage and your site is my
primary source. I would also consider an online interview at some point with you if at all
possible. Thank you for your time and know how on the subject, and I'll keep in touch. --
Ryan
----------------------------
Wednesday, October 27, 1999
Subject: Road Rage Survey
Dear Dr. Driving: I am an adult student at Potomac College in Washington, D.C. I am
currently doing a paper and an oral report in my Psychology class on Road Rage. I am due
for my presentation this coming Saturday (October 30th). I would like your permission to
hand out copies of your World Road Rage Survey to my classmates (17 plus the professor).
Although I have not yet taken this survey (it was not available at this time) I have
taken your Driver Personality Survey and I would like to make an observation. I think you
might consider adding to your basic information the number of miles the person being
surveyed drives annually. I believe that is an important factor. I have an aunt who
received her license when she was in her forties and drives very little. I also have a
seventeen year old who has had her license for about 18 months and probably has more
experience driving in that time than my aunt has in the last twenty-five or more years.
I have enjoyed
reading your information on road rage and driving in general,
obviously in today's society it is a very important topic. Thank you
in advance for your time and cooperation. -- P.C.
P.S. I would also like permission to distribute your Are You An Automotive Vigilante?
and possibly the primer (if I can figure out how to download it). Thank you again.
----------------------------
Wednesday, October 27, 1999
Subject: thank you
Dear Dr. Driving: Thank you for giving me a comment on my project design that I really
appreciate. Another thank you for giving me a permission to use or refer your materials. I
will carry on my project. -- S
----------------------------
Friday, October 29, 1999
Subject: Comments
Dear Dr. Driving: I just located your Dr. Driving website about two weeks ago, and
found it original, entertaining and highly informative. A close friend of mine who lives
in the mountains thought that she should search my name on the web to establish whether I
was bullshitting about things or whether there was substance to my ramblings. She was very
surprised to find so many locations linked to my name, and had to share it with me
immediately. Needless to say, your site dominated. Congratulations!
I am presently the senior associate at the Alberta Centre for Injury Control and
Research and Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Public Health
Sciences at the University of Alberta. The Centre is located on campus, under the
organizational umbrella of the Faculty of Medicine. I have been away from traffic safety
for about four years, engaged in Health Canada research and evaluation projects on
children and well being. I am now back in injury and traffic safety, managing two huge
projects - Aboriginal community development and an in-depth study on EMS (ambulance
services - also slated for a book similar to truckers).
I have recently completed a book on Qualitative Research and Injury Prevention/control,
to be published by the University of Alberta Press. This leads me to the following point.
I have been contracted to edit a book on the latest in traffic safety research/practice. I
want to skip the traditional and highlight new ideas, provocative issues and alternative
perspectives. We have a publisher interested. I wonder if you would be interested in such
a venture by writing a chapter on stress and pressures of everyday drivers and alternative
strategies that will/may work in addressing the stress. The book is sponsored by ACICR and
AMA Mission Possible Traffic Safety Initiative.
There will be at least twenty authors. I
have confirmed inclusions by people such as Herb Simpson (TIRF), Redemaier on cell phones,
Sergio Schmidt (Brazil) on neuro psychology, Gerard Paris-Clavel (France) on underground
communications and traffic safety, Robert Dow (Australia) on marketing road safety and
Geral WIlde (Kingston) on bonus initiatives, Joe Flower on community change, Gunnerson
(Sweden) on roadway calming and Ezra Hauer (Toronto) on roadway engineering among others.
I will also write several articles and the overall design of the book will encompass a
Cybernetic Framework - subsystems that interact amongst each other at strategic junctures
to form a whole while maintaining integrity within the sub system.
The catch is that the sponsors want the first draft of the book submitted in Late
January. But I think that is doable.
Please write back ASAP of your interest. I will send the guidelines after and a brief
description of the framework. Also, I'd like to keep in touch with the happenings at your
center. It looks intriguing. Take care. -- Peter Rothe
----------------------------
Friday, October 29, 1999
Subject: Air Rage Research Info Wanted
Dear Dr. Driving:
I am an undergraduate at the University of Brighton in the UK and I
am conducting research for my final year dissertation.
I am currently researching into
Air Rage and wondered if you had any information you
could let me have. I appreciate that you specialize in Road Rage but I am trying to
investigate a possible link between the two subjects. -- D.
Dear Mr.
D: Yes, there is a link with road rage.
See in this file.
Monday, November 1, 1999
Dear Dr. Driving: Many thanks for this info. Lots of late night reading is on the way.
I can tell! Thanks again! -- David
Dear Mr.
K: Thanks for your kind message.
After you've had a chance to
think about it, I wonder if you can summarize for me what you've learned and what you
think we still need to learn. This is a new field so I'm learning about it from people who
also think about this issue. Thanks!
DrDriving
--------------------------------------------
Dear Dr. Driving:
More than a pleasure! Not sure how long it will take though! I would
be very interested to find out any other info you get on this subject. -- David
----------------------------
Friday, October 29, 1999
Subject: Nothing can be done about road rage
Dear Dr. Driving: Hello - Road rage hasn't even started to reach it's peak yet. There
is very little that the police can do about it. Too many people with cars. It's all over.
-- Russell.
Dear Russell: Thanks for your gloomy message! But what do you actually mean?
----------------------------
Sunday, October 31, 1999
Subject: "RoadRageous - Aggressive Driver Course" Article by AIPS News
Dear Dr. Driving: Hello, my name is Kirstie. I am a 3rd Year (BSc (Hons))
Psychology student at the University of Huddersfield, England.
I am very interested in the area of aggression, particularly Road Rage, and I am
intending to base my dissertation within this field. Whilst carrying out some research on
the internet, I found the article RoadRageous which was produced by AIPS News and which
referred to an Aggressive Driver Course which I understand yourself and Dr. Arnold
Nerenberg have written to enable aggressive driving behavior to be unlearned.
I am very keen to find out more about the studies and research that you and Dr.
Nerenberg carried out before the Course could be written. Please can you tell me where
your article(s) has/have been published so that I can read your report in its entirety. I
am particularly interested in the methods you chose to measure anger and behavior.
Any information you can provide will be gratefully received. Thank you in anticipation.
-- Kirstie
Dear Ms.
K: This is indeed a very good research area, and so congratulations for
finding it and planning a project on it.
The RoadRageous video script represents my approach which is "social
responsibility in driving" and "driving personality makeover" techniques of
self-modification of behavior, and "lifelong driver self-improvement" through
"quality driving circles" and
K through 12 public school driving ed curriculum.
If you go to my site and use the above words and phrases to search the site itself on the
Pico Search button there, you will begin to see laid out, the pieces of text you can bring
together in your own fashion, and that will constitute the position you can represent as
mine. Just use the copy-paste technique (select in your Web browser any text, give the
copy command, then switch to your word processor and give the paste command. Recycle as
many times as you want and you've begun to accumulate or create my statements, as they
serve your project and perspective.
A second method would
be to look over the Topics file I have
here.
I have not published or done experimental research on this topic. Those who have appear
in my extensive bibliography of research on driving and drivers here:
http://DrDriving.org/facts/references.htm
All my research is empirical field research because my interest is in "the
thoughts and feelings of drivers behind the wheel." You can see that experimental
research would only be able to get at this indirectly, so much so as to be uninformative
as to what I want to know, namely, the actual thought sequences and emotional triggerings
and variations in states, moment by moment, in actual traffic.
The empirical technique that allows me to come closest to this is the
Self-Witnessing
Technique which I developed 30 years ago in association with my colleague and wife, Dr.
Diane Nahl. She applied it to what Herbert Simon (the famous information scientist who
received the Nobel Prize) calls "Protocol Analysis" -- see his book with
Ericsson by that title) and she used it with information searching behavior in libraries
and online. I started using the self-witnessing behind the wheel in 1982 by carrying a
tape recorder and speaking my thoughts out loud. Then many of my students tried it, and
this is how I discovered that every driver at some time feels negative emotions behind the
wheel and suffers impairment in judgment and civility.
These findings I have described in many ways and many contexts, as you'll find if you
look at the many articles on my site.
An additional method I sometimes use is the Survey Method. You'll find several articles
on my Road Rage Survey and
Driver Personality
Test, and what they mean in the context of
managing aggressive driving behavior.
I hope you'll write back to keep me informed of your progress, and I'd be delighted to
make comments on any theoretical issue, as well as on research design issues such as
measurement, tests, treatment effects, sampling, and statistical analyses.
DrDriving
-----------------------------------------------
Monday, November 1, 1999
Dear Dr. Driving: Thank you so much for your prompt and very informative reply - you
have certainly given me plenty to go at - I am very much looking forward to exploring your
site.
I would love to keep you informed of my progress and would be very grateful for any
comments you could make - it is very kind of you to take the time. -- Kirstie
----------------------------
Sunday, October 31, 1999
Subject: Permission
Dear Dr. Driving: I
am writing a persuasive speech for my speech class on driving
safety, I would like to know if it would be ok to use your Test
yourself questions and scale to pass out to my classmates so they
can rate themselves. -- Christine
Dear Ms.
C: Permission granted. If possible, give them my Web site address:
http://DrDriving.org. Thanks and good luck with your test. It's a good idea to have them
do through with it!
Sunday, October 31, 1999
Dear Dr. Driving: Thank you and I will include your website address on it. -- Christine
----------------------------
Sunday, October 31, 1999
Subject: Thanks
Dear Dr. Driving: Your information was very knowledgeable and interesting. I started
researching road rage for my topic for Public Speaking class and I couldn't believe all
the information I found out and how many Americans today are just out of control on the
roads. Keep up the work on informing others of road rage and I will do the same. Thanks.
-- Jenn
----------------------------
Monday, November 1, 1999
Subject: Road Rage: what are the causes?
Dear Dr. Driving: Hello, My name is
H. The reason that I am writing to you
is because I am currently writing a paper on the causes of road rage and would be
appreciate any kind of information you could give me that would help me out. I am going to
write my paper on some of the different causes of road rage. Some of the causes that I
will be looking at are peoples tempers, how hot headed people do stupid things when they
get mad. Another thing is how anxiety affects a person while driving. These are just a
some of the types of things I am looking for, if you can give me any help in finding other
cause's for road rage I would be very grateful. --
H
----------------------------
Tuesday, November 2, 1999
Subject: South African Road Rage
Dear Dr. Driving:
I found your website while scanning the Internet for some information
on road rage in South Africa, where I am a journalist for the New York newspaper Newsday.
I have just begun doing research for a story on road rage, my interest having been sparked
by the shooting death of a 9-year-old boy this week by a motorist who fired into the car
in which he was riding. Has your research included anything from South Africa, and do you
have figures on traffic fatalities in general worldwide? I'd be interested in speaking to
you by phone this week, if you can tell me what time is convenient. I'm in Johannesburg,
which is 10 hours ahead of California right now so about 13 hours ahead of you. Thanks. --
Tina
Dear Tina: I'd be delighted to give you a phone interview (I'll check ahead of time to
see what I have on South Africa and other parts of the world).
DrDriving
----------------------------
Tuesday, November 2, 1999
Subject: Driver Psychology
Dear B: Thanks for your message. I've added your name to the list for a
newsletter to be created in the future.
----------------------------
Tuesday, November 2, 1999
Subject: what to do
Dear Jo Goecke:
I'm looking forward to your article. Be sure to let me know where I can
see it. Thanks!
About the woman you interviewed and got the red light running ticket and whom you
advised to go to the police about it, and she said she can always go to court:
I've had several people write to me about just such a situation involving different
types of violations, including threats of violence by enraged motorists. My advice for the
woman you interviewed is: "Try to forget it, and learn your lessons from it and
consider yourself ahead. It's not so much about you, as it is about fate, the law, chance
events, etc. It's not worth fighting for. What will you get if you fight and what will you
get if you forget it? Write down all your ideas in two columns. After you vent and get all
excited again about it, you'll calm down, and then think about it again. What's at stake
here? What really really will you be fighting for, at what cost in emotion, effort, time,
and money?"
One way of letting go, is to do
rational scenarios analysis of the event. First write
out every step, and number the steps. Second, re-read it carefully and try to insert
smaller steps you've omitted, like looking someone in the eye, or cussing out loud, or
hesitating for a an extra moment that took up time, etc. Third, now re-read it again, and
add what your thinking steps were. Now you'll have a lot more steps. Fourth, re-read it
again, and insert what your emotions were, each emotion being a step. Now renumber all the
steps and you should have at least 30 of them, if not go back and insert more steps. Fifth
and finally, go over each step and ask yourself this crucial question: Could I have made a
different step here?
The effect of this exercise is to help you let go and help you turn the experience into
a plus for you by becoming an emotionally intelligent driver, smart and safe, and enjoying
the driving experience, not hating it.
Sometimes people feel that it's somehow wrong to let injustice stand--and they have
different reasons for it, valid reasons, no doubt. And yet I take them back to the same
question: What are you fighting for really? Often people discover that their motivation
comes from venting and feeling outraged and not wanting to let go. This is a psychological
issue and my advice is that it's healthier to let go of it and use it to advance one's
life.
DrDriving
Subject: Re: what to do
Dear Dr. Driving: Thank you for your sage advice. How I would love to take your
courses! Please be assured you will get e-mailed copies of the article for your portfolio
and URLs to find it on-line so you can tell others where to find it. You will also be kept
informed regarding reprints. I usually market an article for one year to 18 months.
Leon, I apologize that I was not clearer. The woman I interviewed says she experienced
road rage and is fighting "leaving the scene of accident" in civil court. While
she is awaiting this trial, she has run a red light (witnessed by a police officer) that I
am certain will be used against her in the civil trial.
Given the credentials of the authorities I interviewed for the article, my ethical
dilemma is do I continue to use her as the victim in my road rage article, knowing she has
been ticketed for running a red light, or do I pull her from the article and simply
interview another victim? My gut sense is I should just drop her part of the interview and
quietly interview another road rage victim. Your job cannot be easy! -- Jo
----------------------------
Wednesday, November 3, 1999
Subject: From your leon.html file/interview
Dear Dr. Driving: My name is Sherri and I'm writing an article for
Traffic Safety Magazine, which is published by the National Safety Counsel. My topic is
impaired driving, and I'm focusing on factors that get less attention than DWI. I would
like to do a brief phone interview with you to discuss how emotional distress impairs
driving. I personally think it's a broader topic than road rage, but I'd like your
thoughts on the subject.
You can e-mail me or call me. I will need to reach you by Monday, November 8, to
include your interview in my article. -- Sherri
Dear Ms.
G: I'd be happy to give you an interview. Please call at my
office number
any morning from 8 to 11 a.m. Hawaii time.
DrDriving
----------------------------
Wednesday, November 3, 1999
Subject: Road Rage Survey
Dear Dr. Driving: What has happened to your road rage survey? I cannot get there via
any of the links on the website. I had taken the survey a year ago and now I am in a group
in a personality development class and we are doing a project on road rage and we wanted
to use that survey to give to the class and also examine the results from your survey for
comparison. The personality test is too long for our purposes even though it is probably
more directly related to the class.
Is this a temporary problem or are you just removing that survey from the site because
you want people to complete the personality survey?
Is there any chance you would be willing to provide us with the road rage survey and
your previous findings. Our class is small, only 10 students. The class is SS310
Personality Development at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Ventura CA campus. Our
professor is Dr. Liza S. Any assistance
would be appreciated. -- Kelley
Dear Kelley : What you want has not been taken off, but is still there, namely:
The Survey Blank (questions) that you can copy at:
http://DrDriving.org/surveys/surveyblank.html
I hope this helps, and good luck!
DrDriving
Wednesday, November 3, 1999
Subject: Re: Road Rage Survey
Dear Dr. Driving: Thanks for your quick response to my inquiry about the older survey.
I was able to get to it via the link you provided in your message, but still had a few
problems getting to some of the links, especially the various survey results. Luckily, I
am still sure I have more than enough info to work with, your site is much more extensive
this year than it was last year!
In any case, I wanted to tell you that since I first took your survey last year, my
attention to my driving and aggression while driving has been greatly increased. I really
try hard now not to get upset and to try to realize what could possibly be motivating the
other person to change lanes without signaling (my personal #1 pet peeve), or to tailgate
me in a dangerous fashion. Though it is often very difficult to empathize with them, I at
least am doing better at not getting mad and just letting it go. So I just wanted to thank
you for that.
It is interesting,
though, because I lived in Germany for four ye |