Thinking styles make a unique contribution to prediction of young drivers use of safe driving styles
Keywords: Young Drivers
ARSRPE
Submission Date: 2012
Abstract
The relationship between driving styles and crash risk has been demonstrated in several studies (e.g. West et al. 1993; Taubman – Ben-Ari et al. 2004). The aim of this research was to determine the predictive ability of Sternberg’s (1997) theory of Mental Self-Government (MSG) for young drivers’ driving styles, with the goal of improving driver training. A questionnaire package consisting of the Thinking Style Inventory-Revised (TSI-R, Sternberg et al. 2003), the Multi-dimensional Driving Style Inventory (MDSI, Taubman – Ben-Ari et al. 2004) and some demographic questions was administered to a convenience sample of 314 young drivers (18-25 years; 157 female). This study found that thinking styles can make a unique contribution to the prediction of young drivers’ driving styles, especially in relation to positive driving styles such as patient driving. Because thinking styles are partly socialised and can be modified (Grigorenko and Sternberg 1997; Zhang and Sternberg 2000), these findings have implications for driver training.