నైరూప్య

Two-Wheeler Riding Patterns, Perceptions and Aggressive Riding Behavior among College Youth

Humera Banu, Neelima Chakrabarty, Rajeev J. Michael, Rajesh Kumar Paulomi M. Sudhir, Manoj K. Sharma, Seema Mehrotra

This paper explores aggressive riding behaviours and experiences that provoke anger while riding among college going youth. A survey capturing positive and negative emotional states while riding, sources of irritation on roads, and factors related to riding fast was administered on a sample of 457 college youth from Delhi. Being caught up in heavy traffic and repeated honking by others were some of the top sources of irritation reported. Verbal/gestural expressions of irritation and violation of traffic rules were some of the aggressive riding behaviours reported as response to frustrating situations. Nearly one third of the participants perceived themselves as riding faster than their counterparts. Approximately one-fifth of the participants indicated that their significant others perceived their riding as unsafe while they themselves continued to hold a perception that they ride safely. The study highlights psychological factors involved in understanding aggressive riding behaviours which are relevant for planning intervention programs.