Knowledge and Attitude Change and the Relationship to Driving Performance amongDrivers Attending California Traffic Violator School

摘要

One of the primary goals of the traffic violator school (TVS) program is toimprove knowledge and attitudes toward traffic safety issues among drivers cited for traffic violations. All TVS courses are required to teach a 400-minute curriculum established by the California Department of Motor Vehicle, covering principles of safe driving, driver responsibility, and licensing regulations. However, the courses may differ in method of instruction, content emphasis, and other factors. Among the specific characteristics on which TVS programs differ are comedy vs. non-comedy presentation modes, public vs. private ownership, and use of advertising inducements. It has been hypothesized that these differences may influence the amount of learning resulting from TVS attendance. The present study measured each TVS attendee's level of knowledge of safe-driving practices and rules of the road, and driving attitudes, before and after course instruction. The study addressed the following two questions: (1) Is gain in knowledge competency and change in driver attitudes resulting from TVS course attendence dependent upon the course's method of instruction, type of provider, or use of advertising inducements. (2) What is the relationship between a student's change in level of knowledge resulting from course attendence and his or her driving record.