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| Road accident statistics and recent research have highlighted the younger teenage age group as particularly at risk of being involved in serious pedestrian accidents. The Scottish Road Safety Campaign sponsored by The Scottish Office commissioned a qualitative study of young teenagers' road use behaviour. The research also aimed to examine teenagers' perceptions of road safety education, looking specifically at a new advertisement developed for SRSC by Faulds Advertising. |
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| Main Findings |
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- The research found an apparent difference between young teenagers' knowledge and their actual behaviour: it was clear that road safety messages had been absorbed but had not been translated into action. Most young teenagers engaged in some form of risky road use behaviour, such as running across the road and walking between parked cars and queuing traffic. A smaller number, mainly younger males, took 'extreme risks' when using the roads.
- Although boys constitute the majority of road accident casualties at all ages, accident statistics show that the difference between boys and girls is narrowest during their early teenage years. This research did not find strong evidence to explain this phenomenon. There was little evidence to suggest that girls were any less likely to engage in 'common risk' behaviour but there was some evidence that they were slightly more careful when they did so.
- Many young people could not offer rational explanations for their risky behaviour, although some spoke of being in a rush and that using crossings was not 'cool'. Much behaviour appeared to be subconscious and many did not consider it to be risky. However, the research uncovered an interesting inconsistency - while young teenagers did not think that they, as individuals, were particularly at risk of pedestrian accidents, they immediately identified 'teenagers', collectively, as a high risk group.
- The research revealed a possible association between alcohol consumption and increased risk taking among young teenagers. This, combined with the fact that teenagers spend more time 'hanging around' than when they were younger may account for some of the Friday night peak in teenage road casualty statistics.
- In general, young teenagers are not interested in road safety education, seeing it as something 'for kids' and as 'boring' and 'repetitive'. If road safety campaigns are to target this age group, they should focus on real-life approaches, stressing both the short and long term impact of suffering a pedestrian road accident. Young people felt 'shock tactics' were the only way of impacting on their behaviour.
- The split-screen format of the current advertisement confused many of the teenagers, especially the younger ones, and this confusion undermined the road safety message.
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| Introduction |
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| The Social Research Unit at System Three was commissioned by the Scottish Road Safety Campaign to carry out a qualitative study to examine young teenagers' perceptions of road safety education and how they use the roads as pedestrians. More specifically, it explored attitudes towards a split-screen road safety advertisement designed for television and cinema and targeted at this 12-15 year old age group. |
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| Young teenagers were identified as the focus of the research because both official road accident statistics and recent research 1 commissioned by The Scottish Office highlight this age group as particularly at risk of being involved in serious pedestrian accidents. Young teenagers tend to engage in more risky road use behaviour than younger children. Although boys constitute the majority of road accident casualties at all ages, the accident statistics show that girls form an increasing proportion as they progress through their teenage years. |
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| Methodology |
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| The research involved 4 schools - 2 in Edinburgh and 2 in East Lothian. A total of 10 focus groups were conducted, involving 63 young people between the ages of 12 and 15. The groups were segmented on the basis of age, sex and the level of affluence of the area in which the school is situated. |
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| Young teenagers and the roads: pedestrian behaviour |
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| The research identified two types of risky pedestrian behaviour. In the first instance, there is 'common risk' behaviour, such as running across roads to get across safely, crossing when the 'green man' is flashing, walking between parked cars and queuing traffic. In addition, there is 'extreme risk' behaviour, such as playing games in the road, dodging cars and holding on to the back of buses when roller-blading. Although acts classified as 'common risk' are less likely to result in an accident, they account for the vast majority of pedestrian road casualties because of the high numbers engaging in this type of behaviour. |
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| Virtually all young people admitted to participating in 'common risk' behaviour. Many could not explain why they did so, appearing to do it subconsciously. Some young teenagers explained their behaviour in terms of not wanting to use crossings because they took too long to change, while others suggested that it was not a 'cool' thing to do. Although some young people complained that they had to take risks because of the lack of designated crossing places, there was little evidence that increasing the number of crossings would result in a corresponding rise in their use. Even where crossings did exist, most young people admitted that they rarely used them. |
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| The small number of young people who engaged in 'extreme risk' behaviour tended to be younger males, although not exclusively. Again, like 'common risk' behaviour, many could not explain why they engaged in such behaviour, although some suggested that it gave them 'a thrill' and relieved their boredom. However, these young people were also more likely to take risks in general, such as engaging in extreme sports. |
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| Although virtually all young people knew how to use the roads safely, many felt their behaviour became more careless as they grew older. Much of this resulted from the increased independence amongst young teenagers. By spending less time in the company of adults they are free to engage in risks they would not have undertaken in an adult's presence. In addition, although they engaged in more 'common risk' behaviour, many felt their increased ability to see over cars, judge distances and run faster meant they were not putting themselves at significantly greater risk. |
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| There was some evidence of young people behaving less responsibly when in the company of friends. However, rather than reflecting peer pressure, this seemed to be the result of a misguided sense of safety in numbers. Many young people felt confident that a car would not run into a group of pedestrians, suggesting a lack of understanding of the power of vehicles and the difficulty of stopping at a short distance. |
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| Young teenagers and pedestrian accidents: perceptions and reality |
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| Many of the young people involved in the research had been involved in a pedestrian road accident or knew a friend who had. However, such personal experiences failed to impact on their long-term behaviour. This highlighted another inconsistency - when asked what would stop them from taking risks on the road, most replied 'if it happened to me'. Yet such personal experiences rarely impacted on their behaviour. For example, those who witnessed very serious accidents felt that it changed their behaviour for a few days after the accident but then forgot about it and returned to taking risks on the roads on a daily basis. This in some way reflects young teenagers' particular definition of 'serious'. While many adults would consider cuts, bruises and broken bones to be serious, and these are used as the definition for official road accident statistics, many young people do not see these injuries as so. To young teenagers, serious accidents are those which result in death or permanent disability, the latter of which appeared more frightening to young people than the former. |
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| Girls showed more sensitivity than boys when discussing personal experiences of pedestrian road accidents. The research found that many boys tried to present a macho image throughout much of the discussion, making it difficult to distinguish between what they really felt and how they 'talked'. However, even though girls showed more concern, and admitted to being scared and shocked by personal experiences, accidents were no more likely to impact on their long-term behaviour. |
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| The research explored whether there were any discrepancies between young teenagers' perceptions of the circumstances of road accidents and the reality. By contrast, it was clear that they were very knowledgeable about where, when and how pedestrian accidents occurred. |
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| The young people participating in the research correctly identified urban areas as the most likely place for accidents to happen. Similarly, they correctly identified the journey to and from school, 'rush hour' and lunchtime as the times of day when accidents were most likely to happen. |
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| Young teenagers clearly understood the types of behaviour that lead to road accidents, such as running and walking between parked cars. Boys were more likely than girls to admit to 'messing about' on the roads and to identify this as the cause of accidents. One interesting issue to arise from the research is the consumption of alcohol. Many young people suggested they took more risks on the roads when they had consumed alcohol. Girls were particularly likely to report that their behaviour became more risky when they had consumed alcohol. |
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| Perhaps surprisingly, young teenagers empathised with the driver when asked who was to blame for pedestrian road accidents. Despite the contradictory claim that cars should stop for pedestrians, when asked who was to blame for most accidents, many felt that the pedestrian was usually at fault. |
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| The accuracy of their perceptions of pedestrian road accidents raised an interesting contradiction. The types of behaviour and situations which they identified as being the most likely to result in accidents were exactly those which they described themselves engaging in. However, they did not see themselves, as individuals, as being particularly at risk but felt that teenagers in general were the highest risk group. |
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| Road safety education: experiences and perceptions |
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| Virtually all young teenagers in the study had received some form of road safety education. Most of them could remember what they had been taught and felt that it had been useful. However, most road safety education was generally felt to be uninteresting. Less traditional approaches, which actively involved young people, were recalled with most enthusiasm. |
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| Road safety education was clearly seen as something 'for kids' and not for young teenagers. Most who participated in the research felt that they knew all there was to know about road safety. Although it was clear that they had absorbed the core road safety messages, they admitted that they did not use this knowledge. |
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| Recommendations for Road Safety Education |
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| If road safety campaigns are to be targeted at this age group, young teenagers would prefer to receive inter-active based education, particularly involving people who have experienced pedestrian road accidents. It was felt that if they had direct contact with people who were having to live with the consequences of a road accident, or with bereaved relatives, it may remind them of the very real dangers associated with careless pedestrian behaviour. |
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| Television was seen as an important mechanism of accessing this age group. However, young people felt that all road safety advertisements were too similar. Therefore, if young people between the ages of 12 and 15 are to be successfully targeted, televisions campaigns should not simply repeat the same messages, or be presented in the same format, as primary school based road safety education. Efforts should be made to disassociate initiatives aimed at teenagers from the traditional approaches aimed at younger children. Teenagers want to be treated as adults and not as children. |
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| Conclusions |
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| The research found that young teenagers frequently engage in 'common risk' behaviour. Many do not see this as putting themselves at risk but recognise the dangers of such behaviour. Road safety knowledge among this age group is high but application of this knowledge is low. Campaigners need to establish how young teenagers can be encouraged to take fewer risks on the road and to put their acquired knowledge into action. |
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| The split-screen advertisement: teenagers' views |
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| The Scottish Road Safety Campaign, in association with Faulds Advertising, have developed an advertisement aimed specifically at the 12 to 15 year old age group. This research aimed to establish their views on the content and relevance of the advertisement. |
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| The advertisement is presented in a split-screen format. One screen shows the main character as he walks down the street looking at his reflection in shop windows and at his friends. The other screen shows what the main character is seeing. The action is set to music, although this stops abruptly when the main character runs into the path of an on-coming car and collides with it. He is flung into the air, screaming, and then lands on the car bonnet, weakly explaining that he cannot feel his legs. The main voice-over in the advertisement states, 'It is funny how you don't have any problem looking left and right until you cross the road.' |
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| Although a small number of teenagers participating in the research felt that the advertisement was effective, most felt that the split-screen format was confusing. Rather than drawing attention to the advertisement this innovative format simply distracted their attention. This was particularly the case for younger teenagers. Although all young people could easily establish the general message of the advertisement, very few could specify the precise message. Many could not decipher either the purpose or the content of the two different screens. |
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| Although most young people could identify with the situation presented in the advertisement, they raised a number of additional problems, such as the advert being too short, too loud and unrealistic. Most felt that this, and other road safety focused advertisements should incorporate shock tactics, or emphasise the long-term consequences of accidents. These were considered the most likely to impact on their road use behaviour. |
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| 1 The Older Child Pedestrian Casualty, Carole Millar Research, 1998 |
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| "The Young Teenager and Road Safety: A Qualitative Study", the research report summarised in this Research Findings, is available priced £5.00. Cheques should be made payable to The Stationery Office and addressed to: |
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The Stationery Office Bookshop, 71 Lothian Road, Edinburgh EH3 9AZ
Telephone: 0131-228 4181, or Fax: 0131-622 7017 The report can also be ordered online from: www.thestationeryoffice.co.uk |
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| Further copies of this Research Findings may be obtained from: |
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The Scottish Office Central Research Unit, 2J, Victoria Quay, Edinburgh EH6 6QQ
Telephone: 0131-244 7560 |