Male Culture is Central to Reckless Driving in New York

Young men participate in reckless driving in New York more than any other group. As a consequence, they are and have been for many years the target of much road safety education and marketing campaigns with relatively limited impact. Why? The Clearing House of Youth Studies surmises it’s because of the strong association between dominant forms of masculinity and high-risk riding/driving behavior.

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American Car Culture

The aim of American car culture is to get noticed. Young men expend a great deal of time and money on making their vehicle standout from the rest. Some cars are created as art objects and painted in unusual, often brilliant iridescent colors. Car stereos are a must, so loud music can attract the attention of others. Even the sound of the engine is of key importance.

Cars and their use offer boys and youth engaged in the development of masculinity many experiences that many of them like: a sense of technical mastery, a realm that is symbolically masculine, a forum for friendship and peer recognition, thrills, laughter, and a certain amount of danger.

Gender Differences Do Play a Role

Recognizing that young men are involved in more reckless driving New York motor vehicle crashes than any other group has been a steady reality in Western society and evidenced by a large body of road safety research.

Over the past five years, young male drivers have contributed dramatically more to the level of injury and damage from reckless driving New York than any other group. Web Crash offers data that shows age-groups 17-20, 21-24 and 25-29 have substantially higher involvement in reckless driving and accidents than any 30 years and over. They also note that a pattern of reckless driving in New York of young males is emerging among the 12-16 age-group, who are not licensed drivers. Additionally, within the five-year period, 23 accidents involved male drivers compared with five for female drivers in the same age-group. Among these reckless driving New York stats, alcohol was involved in 14 of the incidents involving male drivers and only one with a female driver.

As our understanding of road safety matures, many experts are focusing on "human factors" considered as aspects of individual psychology. Examples of human factors are the idea that dangerous and reckless driving in New York is produced by a high level of aggression, or thrill seeking, in the driver, which further gender differences with regard to road safety. See also

Road Rules for Teens that Work

A study released in Pediatrics found that state-run graduated-driver-licensing programs do reduce the occurrence of fatal crashes in 16-year-old drivers by 20 percent and recommend to parents this advice to reduce New York reckless driving crashes even further.

Training wheels: States that require learner's permits for three months (or more) lower teen reckless driving New York crash rates by 15 percent. Keep them practicing for at least that long.

I call shotgun: Don't stop riding with them after they get their license, either. Supervised driving is key. States with 30 or more required hours have 29 percent fewer deaths for 16-year-olds.

No friends allowed: Other teens lead to reckless driving New York, so be the bad guy and keep friends out. States that don't let new drivers transport young passengers have a 48 percent lower fatal crash rate in new drivers.

Afraid of the dark: Give their car a curfew, too. States that prevent 16-year-olds from getting behind the wheel after midnight reduce fatal crashes by 57 percent.

Until reckless driving in New York can be curtailed, injury and damage from car accidents will occur. But you and your loved one don’t have to be a victim. You can seek justice with Seeger Weiss’ help. Fill out this FREE evaluation form today.