Driver self-assessment in Spain and the U.S.A.

The study investigated differences in driver self-assessment between Spanish and U.S. drivers. The following are the main findings. (1) A majority of drivers, both in Spain and the U.S., viewed themselves positively on all driving-related scales studied. (2) Cultural differences were present for several semantic scales. Spanish drivers tended to place themselves more frequently in the middle response category than did U.S. drivers. The converse was the case for the positive response categories. (3) In general, U.S. (but not Spanish) drivers assessed themselves more positively when asked for evaluation on an absolute basis than in relation to the average driver. (4) Older drivers tended to assess themselves more positively than younger drivers. (5) Male drivers tended to assess themselves more positively than female drivers. (6) Demographic information can account for up to 21% of the variance of the responses on the semantic scales.