Student Drivers & Optimism Bias

When being taught how to drive, the number one thing I learned was that it was important to be defensive because you never know the intentions of others. Unfortunately, the unpredictability of vehicles on the road is not a substantial focus in Drivers’ Education. I believe the lack of defensive driving taught to our youth is one of the leading reasons for injuries and fatalities on the road. Student drivers are consequently reckless when driving, regardless of experience. For this reason, it is imperative to have a comprehensive and complete driver education program in order to prevent potential deaths. A jarring statistic comes from the CDC presenting that in 2019, over 258,000 teens were admitted to the hospital due to accidents, and 2,400 were killed from said crashes. Focusing on the severity and reality of these accidents while teaching youth how to drive responsibly is a reasonable step in the right direction to minimizing automotive accidents.

Positively conditioning adolescents to be more alert while driving in addition to acknowledging their responsibility as a driver is critical. I believe this high number of injured minors is due to the standard mentality among teens of “Oh, that won’t happen to me,” more formally named the Optimism Bias. Optimism bias deals with a person of age not considering themselves eligible to be in harm’s way. Naturally with adolescents, a brain that has not fully developed is woefully tolerant of this mindset. This demographic should be aware of this psychological impediment in drivers’ education. An example of optimism bias that is worryingly typical among teens is its role in driving under the influence. Overconfidence in these types of situations only jeopardizes teens’ lives. This grandeur of hazards while drunk driving is dismally pushed aside, even though there are many horror stories about intoxicated driving’s tragic endings.

A general reform of the driver education agenda is integral in seeing future change. Rather than overwhelming young drivers with gruesome videos and startling stories with terrible endings, it would be more beneficial to explain the fundamental techniques, tips, and tricks of being a defensive driver. Examples of this include Incorporating adjusting your own actions according to the attitude of others instead of trying to compete or normalizing using the slow lane more often. Seemingly simple fixes with useful lives being saved in the process. While teaching student drivers how to deal with the aftermath of an accident is necessary, instruction on becoming a proactive driver is arguably more crucial. A road with attentive and observant drivers is ideal for all drivers and has the possibility to mitigate the number of deaths related to driving rapidly.

Situational realism in the demonstrational videos would decrease the number of automotive deaths. I believe there are many possible upgrades to the current Drivers Education curriculum. Incorporating conversation about newer add-ons to cars, such as distractions like Apple CarPlay or Voice Control features, is another effective way to help student drivers feel more secure. Although both are not as dangerous as being directly on a mobile phone, the possibility of diverting attention away from the road is nevertheless present. Instituting a new rule on Smart Car applications and electronics accompanied by a detailed lesson taught in Drivers Education would be incredibly productive. There are high risks in having technology like this at the click of a button. Familiarizing newer drivers with common hand motions while driving is beneficial to preventing accidents involving merging. Although driving in tighter areas like shopping centers is a recurring event for many, there is a minor emphasis on the topic. Shopping centers that are unfamiliar to drivers of any experience can be complex due to their structure and the nature of other drivers. By not knowing the etiquette of stop signs, accidents are inevitable. Crashes will be lessened by teaching a standard set of hand motions to the youth and popularizing these actions to more experienced drivers.

I am very thankful that I do not have any personal experiences dealing with car accidents and do not have friends or family that drive in a way that could put them in harm’s way. I believe that their emphasis on safety directly influenced my own driving and has kept me from any possible accidents. Growing to find a defensive style of driving that suits the area you live in and your comfortability on the road is essential. There is a somber truth behind the heightening number of car accidents; change needs to be made, starting with the drivers themselves.