New laws to curb dangerous driving highlight the fascinating psychology of the road
A handy top ten of all the things 'we' know, and more...
http://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2013/aug/19/driving-road-neuroscience-psychology
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!
Bad driving: what are we thinking?
(14 posts)-
Posted 11 years ago #
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I'd bet cyclists are much the same.
Posted 11 years ago # -
Without a doubt (I'll confess to at least 3 of the 10), Instography, but we don't have a tonne of metal to play with*, so when we make a mistake, the collateral damage is normally not so serious.
It is interesting though, to read through and substitute driving with cycling.
*Although my aged Streetmachine comes close
Posted 11 years ago # -
"I'd bet cyclists are much the same. "
Especially as many are also drivers.
There are some differences though since cyclists are not wrapped up in their own wee environment and cyclists tend to think more defensively as they feel less safe.
Posted 11 years ago # -
Also the relationship with expensive machines is weaker with cyclists (and motorists don't usually recognise it).
Posted 11 years ago # -
But cyclists in relation to other cyclists and pedestrians.
Posted 11 years ago # -
Fundamental finding in a lot of social psychology loosely linked to locus of control
Everyone perceives their own competence to be an internal attribute e.g. I am a skilled cyclist or driver - this is the internal locus of control
Everyone perceives others' competence to external attributes e.g. They were lucky, that was a wind assisted pass etc - the external locus of control
I am not saying thisis always the case, just that they are the underlying hypotheses and various experimental designs monkey around with your perceptions of competence.
The traffic psychology is quite robust, they have amassed a fair bit of data over the years.
Rings true but as insto said, rings true for cyclists and now I am saying rings true for everybody to if I recall correctly not people suffering from depression?
Posted 11 years ago # -
"
Why Drivers nearly don't miss cyclists
Drivers always look far forward up the road not at the near things they have already accounted for. It's simply too late to deal with hazards when they are already upon them.Having seen the cyclist very early and having planned their pass, once alongside, the cyclist is now a past event and the attention is now further up the road and especially for opposing traffic. The objective, to pass the cyclist without striking them, has been achieved. However the cyclist is bound to feel unnerved and insecure if the pass is only a matter of inches. That doesn't automatically mean dangerous driving, it is how one feels when being passed by big heavy machines on the move. That is the brain simply telling you you're in danger and asking 'what am I doing here?'
"
http://www.driveeastmidlands.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/why-drivers-nearly-dont-miss-cyclists.html
Posted 11 years ago # -
@chdot, did you read that blogger's response to a comment who dared to suggest such close passes might be dangerous?
Posted 11 years ago # -
Lincolnshire, England's road traffic fatality county winner for several years running around the turn of the century.
Posted 11 years ago # -
I had the pleasure of interviewing someone like him many years ago. Fascinating and horrifying in equal measure.
Posted 11 years ago # -
Thinking anything at all is a start. On our quiet back roads I sometimes 'come round' having cycled about 4 miles without noticing anything at all...
Posted 11 years ago # -
That Drive East Midlands blogger is someone who posted how he liked the Nice Way Code because cyclists show show respect for drivers, without whom society would crumble, and that they're all 'trying' not to hit cyclists. The Nice Way Code twitter person posted 'here here' in response.
Seriously. Agreeing with the tweet was bad enough, but a wee click through to make sure the person wasn't a loon would have helped.
Posted 11 years ago # -
I think we already guessed that this campaign was being run by people who don't appear to know what they're doing.
Posted 11 years ago #
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