Human Factors Identified by Petridou and Moustaki Increasing the Risk of Traffic Accidents

Description

Petridou and Moustaki identified human factors that may contribute to vehicular accidents. These can help identify drivers who may need interventions to reduce the risk of traffic accidents. The authors are from Athens University Medical School.

Parameters:

(1) short term (temporary) vs long term impact on driving abilities

(2) ability to handle driving emergencies vs tendency to cause driving emergencies

Short-Term Impact	Unable to Handle Contingencies	Risk Taking
acute alcohol intoxication	x	x
acute drug intoxication	x	x
acute medical condition	x	x
acute psychological stress	x	x
binge eating	x
compulsive acts		x
criminal activities		x
drowsiness and fatigue	x
short-term medication effect	x
suicidal behavior		x
temporary distractions	x

where:

• Acute medical condition was added to the table.

• Acute psychological stress was added as a cause of acute risk taking.

Long-Term Impact	Unable to Handle Contingencies	Risk Taking
accident proneness	x	x
alcoholism	x	x
continuous use of the cell phone	x
disease and disability	x
drug addiction	x	x
elderly	x
failure to use safety measures (seat belts in cars or helmet on motor cycle)		x
habitual disregard for traffic rules		x
habitual speeding		x
inappropriate sitting position while driving		x
inexperience	x
overestimation of capabilities		x
rude driving behavior		x

where:

• Disease and disability include poor vision, epilepsy, cardiac ischemic disease, etc.

• The original table lists indecent rather than rude driving behavior. Although indecency raises some intriguing possibilities, the intent appears to be non-decent (as in overly aggressive) behavior.

• The use of the cell phone is not in the original table.

• Failure to use safety equipment does not cause accidents per se but indicates a mental attitude that may be more likely to take risks.

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Description

Specialty

ICD-10