Personality predictors of speeding in young drivers: Anger vs. sensation seeking

Among personality factors, sensation seeking and anger are the main predictors of voluntary risky behaviors. The studies that compare the impact of these factors show that anger is a greater predictor of voluntary risky driving behaviors than sensation seeking. However, these studies usually average data from several risky behaviors, and it is possible that analyzing data from individual risky behaviors would yield different results. Speeding in particular corresponds more closely to the definition of sensation seeking than anger, and should be influenced more strongly by sensation seeking than anger. To test this hypothesis we conducted two studies among French young drivers (n1 = 143; n2 = 2038), where we asked participants the speed they would drive at in a given situation or the likelihood they would commit speeding, and used scales specific to driving situations to measure anger and sensation seeking with. Both studies reveal that driving sensation seeking is a better predictor of speeding than driving anger or either of its factors. The implications of these results are discussed.

► Driving anger predicts young drivers’ risky behaviors better than sensation seeking.
► We ran two studies using driving specific scales and focusing on speeding.
► Speeding is better predicted by driving sensation seeking than driving anger.
► Only some factors of driving anger have an effect on speeding.
► Speeding is also predicted by driving experience.