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Road Rage Research Papers

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Road rage is something that we’re all familiar with today, but why does it occur, and why does it affect so many people? Is there a driving sociological or psychological force behind road rage? What is it about sitting in a metal box for hours at a time every day which causes us to lose our tempers so spectacularly? Youtube and personal experience have demonstrated that road rage and dangerous driving can lead to physical confrontations, either from inside of our vehicles or outside of it, and even death in some cases. Road rage is not restricted to cars and trucks, but is also prevalent between motorcyclists and cars, since motorcyclists are much more vulnerable to injury. Here we will examine the difference between normal rage and road rage, …show more content…

A detailed list of “common motorist irritants” includes racing to beat a yellow light that’s about to turn red, traveling in the passing or left lane at a slower speed, making it impossible for others to pass, driving with high beams on behind another vehicle or toward oncoming traffic, slowing down after passing another driver, not making a right turn in the right-hand turn lane, and failing to react quickly enough after the red light turns green. The IDOT website is based upon the “He/she who drives away, lives to drive another day” tenet, and recommends basic driving behavior modifications or practices to avoid road rage incidents. Some of these include putting physical distance between the road rage driver and the car being driven, driving at a safe following distance (one car length per 10 miles per hour of speed), being polite and courteous of other drivers, staying mostly within one lane, avoiding cell phone distraction, avoiding eye contact and reaction to an aggressive driver, keeping music at a low level, and being tolerant of other …show more content…

Psychologically, IED is rooted in Hostile Attribution Bias (HAB) or the belief that every occurrence or threat is purposefully and personally targeting the victim. IED sufferers over-personalize all interactions and thus overreact immediately and aggressively. According to Lauren Kirchner of PSMag, people with serotonin or dopamine levels that are low or inconsistent are often impulsive and aggressive. Coccaro likens road rage to being in a state of denial and a sense of heightened power. Coccaro states, “I say that to people all the time, ‘Don’t assume that the other person is you…you don’t know how nuts they are. You don’t know that they don’t have a gun in their glove compartment.’” Kirchner reported that a Harvard School of Public Health’s study found that the presence of a gun in a car might cause road rage situations to escalate faster. The study also found that young adult males, binge drinkers, distrustful people, those driving with guns, and those arrested for non-traffic violations were most likely to demonstrate road

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