Young novice drivers account for a disproportionate number of traffic crashes in the United Kingdom and throughout the world. While the basic elements of driving can be taught rather quickly, the complexities of safely manoeuvring a fast moving, heavy vehicle in varying psychosocial and environmental conditions requires significantly more training than what is currently provided (Deery, 1999). In order to better address this important period of vulnerability, a comprehensive review was conducted to examine psychosocial, judgement and decision-making models and constructs relevant to traffic safety and related behaviours. The goal of this review is to improve the quality of traffic safety interventions through theoretically-informed programming. This report begins by identifying psychosocial targets from a conceptual framework of safe driving behaviour.1 Psychosocial targets had to be: (a) strong predictors of safe driving behaviour; and (b) have programmatic utility using a reasonable intervention strategy (Green and Kreuter, 2004; Fishbein and Yzer, 2003). By ‘programming utility’ we are referring to either the potential of changing the predictor or the potential for tailoring effective programming to the predictor. Second, we consider relevant population-based communications modalities to address these psychosocial targets. These modalities include: • mass media; • primary care physicians; • teachers; • peers; • parents; • theatre production; and • interactive computer technology. We use RE-AIM criteria developed by Glasgow et al. (1999) to evaluate these modalities for long-term impact on driver safety behaviour. Third, we attempt to create an intervention map that examines the utility of each identified psychosocial target as it might be delivered within each communications modality. By applying the empirical evidence gathered from years of intervention research in other health-related behaviours, we hope to identify new directions for developing practical pre-driver and novice driver safety programmes that are both effective and reach a large majority of those in need. The purpose of this mapping is to assist policy-makers in identifying the most relevant psychosocial targets and methods of addressing those targets. We do this using evidence of what has worked, and what has not worked. Finally, we present a rationale and description of an internet-based driver safety program that could be developed for pre-drivers and novice drivers. This communications modality was highly rated relative to other modalities and shows promise as a potentially high reach, high efficacy, low-cost intervention. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting