Objective:The purpose of the study was to evaluate, in young subjects, the relationships between risky driver behavior and personality factors. Another aim was to assess the neuroendocrine correlates of personality and behavioral factors.Materials and Methods:We recruited 68 students (32 men and 36 women), after having obtained their informed consent. The subjects completed the following self-report questionnaires: the Big five Questionnaire, designed to evaluate the Big Five personality traits, the Sensation Seeking Scale, and the Driver Behaviour Questionnaire that evaluates driving behavior by frequency of lapses, errors, and violations. In urine samples collected from 8 am to 11 am we measured adrenaline, noradrenaline, dopamine, and serotonin levels using a HPLC system with an ESA detector.Results:Both lapses and errors were negatively related with emotional stability. The number of violations of highway code resulted positively related with extroversion and sensation seeking scores. Negative associations of violations with conscientiousness and cooperativity were observed. Regarding the relationship between driving behavior, personality traits, and neuroendocrine parameters, positive relations between violations and dopamine levels, and between driving errors and serotonine levels were observed. The stepwise regression analyses performed using psychological and biochemical measures as predictors and behavioral measures as dependent variables showed conscientiousness and dopamine levels as the main predictors of highway code violations. Only emotional stability remained significant in the final model, including lapses as dependent variable, whereas emotional stability and serotonin levels resulted predictors of errors.Conclusions:Our results, in agreement with previous researches, give further support to the role played by personality dimensions on unsafe driving, and improve the knowledge of the different risky driving behaviors. The interesting findings concerning the neuroendocrine correlates of driving behavior contribute to a better understanding of the biological bases of risky behaviors, including unsafe driving.
Personality traits as predictors of risky driving / Vinceti, Marco; Bergomi, Margherita; Vivoli, R.; Rovesti, Sergio; Bussetti, Pamela; Vivoli, Gianfranco. - In: EPIDEMIOLOGY. - ISSN 1044-3983. - STAMPA. - 18:5(2007), pp. S207-S208. (Intervento presentato al convegno ISEE - International Society for Environmental Epidemiology - 19th Annual Conference - Environment, food and global health. tenutosi a Mexico City nel September 5-9, 2007).
Personality traits as predictors of risky driving
VINCETI, Marco;BERGOMI, Margherita;ROVESTI, Sergio;BUSSETTI, Pamela;VIVOLI, Gianfranco
2007
Abstract
Objective:The purpose of the study was to evaluate, in young subjects, the relationships between risky driver behavior and personality factors. Another aim was to assess the neuroendocrine correlates of personality and behavioral factors.Materials and Methods:We recruited 68 students (32 men and 36 women), after having obtained their informed consent. The subjects completed the following self-report questionnaires: the Big five Questionnaire, designed to evaluate the Big Five personality traits, the Sensation Seeking Scale, and the Driver Behaviour Questionnaire that evaluates driving behavior by frequency of lapses, errors, and violations. In urine samples collected from 8 am to 11 am we measured adrenaline, noradrenaline, dopamine, and serotonin levels using a HPLC system with an ESA detector.Results:Both lapses and errors were negatively related with emotional stability. The number of violations of highway code resulted positively related with extroversion and sensation seeking scores. Negative associations of violations with conscientiousness and cooperativity were observed. Regarding the relationship between driving behavior, personality traits, and neuroendocrine parameters, positive relations between violations and dopamine levels, and between driving errors and serotonine levels were observed. The stepwise regression analyses performed using psychological and biochemical measures as predictors and behavioral measures as dependent variables showed conscientiousness and dopamine levels as the main predictors of highway code violations. Only emotional stability remained significant in the final model, including lapses as dependent variable, whereas emotional stability and serotonin levels resulted predictors of errors.Conclusions:Our results, in agreement with previous researches, give further support to the role played by personality dimensions on unsafe driving, and improve the knowledge of the different risky driving behaviors. The interesting findings concerning the neuroendocrine correlates of driving behavior contribute to a better understanding of the biological bases of risky behaviors, including unsafe driving.
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