Rising Above Road Rage: New Study Recommends Two-Step Process.

A new study published in Transportation Research highlights the importance of emotional self-regulation in preventing aggressive driving behaviors. The study, led by Dr. Steven Love of the University of Sunshine Coast in Australia, explores how drivers can control their anger and manage instances of road rage.

“Aggressive driving encompasses behaviors such as speeding, tailgating, traffic rule violations, and inappropriate lane changing,” explains Love. “These behaviors often result in altercations between drivers, leading to verbal or physical aggression or using the vehicle to express anger.”

Love recommends two practical steps for improving aggressive driving behavior:

1. Recognize the issue. The first step to improving behavior is acknowledging there is an issue and taking responsibility. Although external triggers can initiate feelings of anger, individuals must understand they are responsible for their responses.
2. Practice self-regulation. This can be incorporated into daily routines, and there are specific mindfulness-based methods that can expedite the process of developing skills and nurturing a positive mindset.

“The challenge with aggressive driving behaviors is that they can arise instantly and be an unconscious response to emotional impulses,” adds Love. “This makes it challenging to intervene from both an enforcement and self-regulatory perspective.”

Using semi-structured interviews, the study examines the triggers of anger, factors contributing to anger, processes of anger regulation, and how individuals assess angry driving experiences to understand self-regulation in the context of aggressive driving. The study found that individuals with high metacognitive awareness had better control over and regulation of anger, leading to a more adaptive evaluation of angry driving experiences. Understanding metacognition allows individuals to detach from their negative thoughts, identify harmful thinking patterns, and regulate their emotions effectively, explains Love.

Individuals with antisocial traits were found to be more resistant to change and had poorer control over their anger, often attributing aggressive behaviors to others and engaging in anger rumination, leading to heightened and more uncontrollable anger responses in future triggering situations. Positive reappraisal, a highly effective strategy, involves adopting tactics to change or control one’s thinking, and strategies that aim to positively process negative feelings, explains the study.

“The strategies we adopt will depend on our metacognitive skills and how experienced we are at regulating thinking. For example, an experienced person might say ‘I just control it.’ Fortunately, as with any skill, practicing the process of being self-aware can be learned and, in time, mastered,” concludes Love.

Check out the full interview with Dr. Steven Love discussing his new research on therapytips.org.

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