Swansea University psychologists have collaborated with software engineers at Imagitech Ltd to develop the Roadmarque® system that measures the risk factors in occupational drivers and provides specific awareness training.
Road traffic accidents are one of the leading causes of death in the UK, yet much of the existing research into this does not take into account those who drive for a living and face these risks on the job.
Therefore, a total of 443 occupational drivers from four main groups – delivery drivers, HGV drivers, occasional drivers and sales representatives – from a variety of organisations, took part in the study led by Gabrielle Jerzembek, of the Department of Psychology and the School of Medicine at Swansea University and Dr Gerhard Manogg of Imagitech Ltd in Swansea.
Interviews conducted on 17 drivers were analysed from which a questionnaire was created and tested on the remaining 426 drivers. The aim of these tests was to identify the factors that lead to accidents and cumulative risk, such as points on a driver’s licence, speeding tickets and other recorded offences.
The team found deliberate risk taking and inattention to be the most important causes of accidents. Sensation seeking and venting emerged as the most important causes of a variety of traffic offences and violations.
Dr Manogg said: “This study will enable us to build a comprehensive risk profile for each individual driver, together with driving history, knowledge and skill assessments, and inform training to help reduce road risk in occupational drivers. Further studies will address the aspects raised by this initial research as well as analyse data collected through the ongoing use of our driver risk assessment package Roadmarque®”.
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Date Published: April 09, 2008
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