What are risky drivers thinking?
by
Steven M Sweat on May. 09, 2016
Accident & Injury Car Accident Accident & Injury Personal Injury Accident & Injury Wrongful Death
Summary: Are risky drivers suffering from some type of brain abnormality that can be treated? How can a lawyer assist a victim of a crash caused by a bad motor vehicle operator?
Out of all the accidents that happen around the world today, road crashes are the most preventable injuries and deaths in individuals under the age of 35. Roughly, five million individuals suffer from an injury or pass away all because of a car accident. Repeat offenders tend to contribute heavily to these statistics. These individuals fail to respond to situations like they should, thus causing an abundance of accidents. Proper response time is crucial when it comes to preventing an accident.
According to information from McGill University, you need to understand the emotional processes and subconscious minds of high-risk drivers. A study focused on speeding and repeat drunk driving offenders showed distinct personality, behavioral and neurobiological profiles all stemming from these types of dangerous driving.
Oftentimes, these drivers don’t think they are risk takers. They believe that they are doing nothing wrong and their driving is entirely normal. If a driver doesn’t think that they are being risky, they aren’t going to be willing to change the way they are driving. However, if we don’t and they don’t understand what type of behavior they are exhibiting, how can we change it into something more effective?
Measuring Cortisol Levels
According to a study published in PLOS ONE, four male groups of participants ages 19-39 were formed in Quebec. They consisted of individuals who had a prior history of at least two convictions for DUIs, speeding or at least three moving violations within the previous two years. They also looked for individuals with a driving history that contained an assortment of crimes, as well as a control group that consisted of low-risk drivers.
Researchers then gathered a bunch of background information on all of the participants’ propensity for any alcohol or drug abuse, their tendencies for seeking thrills or rewards for their decisions, their impulsivity and inhibition levels and their capacity to learn from their past experiences and make better choices for the future. The study also observed participants’ driving abilities using a simulator to measure the amount of cortisol released both before and after completing a series of stressful tasks.
Based on the results, each group had a distinct behavioral and emotional profile. Because of this, the research team speculated that high-risk drivers tend to be more likely to respond to any preventative strategies taking their characteristics into account.
Possible Treatment Options
One of the techniques to help treat those who are reward-seeking and thrill-seeking speeding offenders is to have them spend more time participating in stimulating activities within a controlled environment. Because a drunk driver is more sensitive to the effects alcohol has on their ability to stave off risks, these individuals might respond better to a series of exercises that are aimed at being able to improve their overall ability to recall any negative consequences associated with drinking whenever they are planning to drive.
This might include coming up with strategies where the driver goes through and mentally rehearses their plans for heading out on the town with friends when there is a good chance drinking might be involved. They need to focus on avoiding making any decisions about driving under the influence of alcohol.
The control group ended up engaging in dangerous driving activities as characterized by a lack of concern for anyone else that extended into criminal behavior in various instances. Techniques were focused on an individual’s motivations, rather than morals, to help them succeed in being able to change the behaviors of offenders. Repeat offenders often continue engaging in risky behaviors and cause a series of motor vehicle accidents to occur, injuring or killing countless individuals in their wake.
A lawyer can come in and investigate the driving record of someone who has multiple accident claims and use this information as evidence for negligent entrustment. Someone who continually goes out and abuses their driving privileges causing injury to others needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. There is no reason why an individual should be injured when they did nothing wrong and obeyed every traffic law in the book. If you were injured by someone who shouldn’t have been driving in the first place, let your lawyer use the information gather to help you get additional damages in your gross negligence claim.
According to information from McGill University, you need to understand the emotional processes and subconscious minds of high-risk drivers. A study focused on speeding and repeat drunk driving offenders showed distinct personality, behavioral and neurobiological profiles all stemming from these types of dangerous driving.
Oftentimes, these drivers don’t think they are risk takers. They believe that they are doing nothing wrong and their driving is entirely normal. If a driver doesn’t think that they are being risky, they aren’t going to be willing to change the way they are driving. However, if we don’t and they don’t understand what type of behavior they are exhibiting, how can we change it into something more effective?
Measuring Cortisol Levels
According to a study published in PLOS ONE, four male groups of participants ages 19-39 were formed in Quebec. They consisted of individuals who had a prior history of at least two convictions for DUIs, speeding or at least three moving violations within the previous two years. They also looked for individuals with a driving history that contained an assortment of crimes, as well as a control group that consisted of low-risk drivers.
Researchers then gathered a bunch of background information on all of the participants’ propensity for any alcohol or drug abuse, their tendencies for seeking thrills or rewards for their decisions, their impulsivity and inhibition levels and their capacity to learn from their past experiences and make better choices for the future. The study also observed participants’ driving abilities using a simulator to measure the amount of cortisol released both before and after completing a series of stressful tasks.
Based on the results, each group had a distinct behavioral and emotional profile. Because of this, the research team speculated that high-risk drivers tend to be more likely to respond to any preventative strategies taking their characteristics into account.
Possible Treatment Options
One of the techniques to help treat those who are reward-seeking and thrill-seeking speeding offenders is to have them spend more time participating in stimulating activities within a controlled environment. Because a drunk driver is more sensitive to the effects alcohol has on their ability to stave off risks, these individuals might respond better to a series of exercises that are aimed at being able to improve their overall ability to recall any negative consequences associated with drinking whenever they are planning to drive.
This might include coming up with strategies where the driver goes through and mentally rehearses their plans for heading out on the town with friends when there is a good chance drinking might be involved. They need to focus on avoiding making any decisions about driving under the influence of alcohol.
The control group ended up engaging in dangerous driving activities as characterized by a lack of concern for anyone else that extended into criminal behavior in various instances. Techniques were focused on an individual’s motivations, rather than morals, to help them succeed in being able to change the behaviors of offenders. Repeat offenders often continue engaging in risky behaviors and cause a series of motor vehicle accidents to occur, injuring or killing countless individuals in their wake.
A lawyer can come in and investigate the driving record of someone who has multiple accident claims and use this information as evidence for negligent entrustment. Someone who continually goes out and abuses their driving privileges causing injury to others needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. There is no reason why an individual should be injured when they did nothing wrong and obeyed every traffic law in the book. If you were injured by someone who shouldn’t have been driving in the first place, let your lawyer use the information gather to help you get additional damages in your gross negligence claim.