The author does not agree with the previous author's statement that common sense is not valid in road safety work. On the contrary, it is common sense that has been proved valid while the oversimplified views of certain pedagogues have been invalidated. Training programmes in Norway are most expensive in the world; last year ten more hours of driving and eight hours of theory were added to training. In spite of this, the number of accidents has not decreased. Driving instructors say that a person can be taught to drive but the problem is to teach him how to apply this skill, e.g. by not driving too fast. Education and information alone will not change behaviour. The law of effect states that any act producing any act producing satisfaction will be repeated, while any act producing discomfort is less likely to recur. The only way to reduce dangerous driving is to make is less desirable, either by greater likelihood of punishment of by making risky driving undesirable. The norms and beliefs of anybody can be changed, given the power to change that person's environment and the time to do it. If a driving instructor wants to change the thinking of a person who has been made to regard risk taking as of value, he is fighting a losing battle. For the paper by N.P. Gregersen, see C 6537.
Abstract