Research Papers (2009 – 2013)

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among risky driving attitudes, self-perceptions as a risky driver, playing of “drive’em up” (which rewarded players for frequent traffic and other violations), and “circuit” racing video games and self-reported risky driving through a web-based survey of a sample of car and racing club members. In particular, this study was interested in testing Fischer and colleagues’ [1-4] socio-cognitive model for understanding how racing video game playing is associated with risky driving self perceptions, attitudes and behaviours.

Method: An Internet questionnaire was developed using the expert panel method and was primarily based on validated instruments or questions derived from other surveys. The questionnaire included: 1) attitudes regarding Ontario’s stunt driving legislation and street racing; 2) self-perceptions as a risky driver scales; 3) playing of video games and 4) self-reported stunt driving. Car club participants were invited to participate in the survey. A hierarchical multiple regression was performed considering self-reported stunt driving as the dependent variable, entering the following in the model: age (16-34, 35+) and driving exposure as control variables in the first step; self-perceptions as a risky driver (Driver Thrilling Seeking and Competitive Attitude Toward Driving scales) in the second step; attitudes in the third step and playing “drive’em up” and “circuit” racing games in the last step in order to examine the effects of the predictor variables on the dependent variable.

Results: A total of 463 survey respondents were included in the analyses. The total model explained 36% of the variance. Specifically, the results showed higher self-reported stunt driving for respondents who reported driving more hours per week, scored higher on Driver Thrill Seeking and Competitive Attitude Toward Driving scales, reported more negative attitudes toward Ontario’s Stunt Driving legislation, reported more positive attitudes toward street racing and reported playing “drive’em up” video games more frequently. However, “circuit” video games did not predict self-reported stunt driving

Conclusions: These findings support Fischer and colleagues’ experimental studies in which sensation seeking, attitudes and “drive’em up” street-racing games, but not “circuit” racing games, are associated with increased risky driving behaviour.

Evelyn Vingilis, Jane Seeley, David L. Wiesenthal, Christine M. Wickens, Robert E. Mann, Peter Fischer