iKörkort
iKörkort
Tests
Language
Bookmarks
Overview
Introduction
The car
People
The environment
Driving in towns and cities
Driving on country roads
Darkness and slippery conditions
Accidents
Numbers and statistics
The driving test
Other
Audiobook
Stress, peer pressure and other people's expectations can affect how you think, react, and make decisions when you drive. It is therefore important to understand how these factors can change your behaviour in traffic.
In this chapter, you will learn how stress and peer pressure can affect your judgement, your decisions and your ability to drive responsibly and safely.
High stress can make it harder to think clearly, stay calm, and handle traffic situations in a good way. Everyone experiences stress for different reasons and reacts to it in different ways. What feels stressful for one person may feel completely normal for another.
When it comes to driving, experience plays a big role in how stressed you become and how you handle stress. Many new drivers become easily stressed because they are constantly faced with new situations and challenges.
New and inexperienced drivers are more easily stressed than more experienced drivers
To become a better driver you have to get to know yourself and understand what causes you stress, how you react to it and what you can do to prevent stress from becoming too high.
Moderate stress levels can actually enhance performance. High stress levels, on the other hand, drastically lower performance. Only you know how you react to high stress, but the most common reactions are that you:
Some freeze and just give up when exposed to high stress
By driving defensively and planning ahead, you can make driving easier and avoid situations that cause unnecessary stress.
Being well-rested before you drive improves your ability to notice, interpret and react correctly in traffic, making it easier to stay calm.
If you are easily stressed, make sure you allow plenty of time for your journey so you don’t feel rushed. You can also make driving easier by choosing the right time, for example by avoiding rush hour and driving in the dark.
It is also important that your car and its equipment are reliable and in good condition.
Another way to reduce stress is to practise the parts of driving that you find difficult. If, for example, parallel parking or hill starts feel stressful, practise them under controlled conditions when you are not in a hurry, and then in real traffic.
Once you have learned to handle the situation, it will probably no longer cause stress.
In order to become a good driver, it is important to continue practicing on the things that you find difficult, even after you get your driver's licence
When other people influence how you drive or behave in traffic, it is often a matter of peer pressure. This means that you do something you would not have done if you were alone.
Peer pressure can be both positive and negative – it depends on the people in the group.
For example, if passengers pressure you to drive faster than allowed or encourage risky behaviour, the peer pressure is negative. If someone pressures a driver to drink alcohol despite knowing they will be driving, this is also negative.
On the other hand, if passengers encourage the driver to slow down because the road is slippery, the peer pressure is positive. Be aware of how others influence you.
Remember: Peer pressure becomes dangerous when it makes you do something you know is wrong.
Do not let yourself be affected by negative peer pressure
Studies have shown that young, mostly male, but also female, drivers run a very high risk of being involved in a traffic accident when driving with young male passengers. A strong contributing factor to this is peer pressure.
But even if the passengers in a car pressure the driver to drive in a way that leads to an accident, it is always the driver who bears the responsibility.
If you cause an accident, you as a driver always bear the responsibility
A dangerous situation that can be caused by peer pressure is when one or more persons without a driver's licence ask a person with a driver's licence to try driving or borrow his or her car.
If you let a friend that you know does not have a licence drive your car you, both risk penalties. Your friend is guilty of unlawful driving and you are guilty of permitting unlawful driving.
Another dangerous situation caused by peer pressure is when someone with a driving licence encourages a person without a licence to drive, for example to drive home from a party.
Remember: Never lend your car to someone who does not have a driving licence.
Everyone can fall for peer pressure, but people with low self-confidence are more easily affected than others. Instead of speaking up, such people do as they are told because they want to be accepted by the group. This may eventually cause them to stop trusting their own judgment, making their self-confidence even worse.
People with low self-confidence are more easily affected by peer pressure than others
In order to gain respect and acceptance in the group, you have to make your own decisions, take responsibility for the group's safety and dare to speak up for yourself.
Keep this in mind when you are a passenger as well. Make sure you do not pressure a friend to drive in a way they are not comfortable with. Do not hesitate to speak up if you feel unsafe with how someone is driving.
