Important Aspects of Human Behavior in Road Traffic Accidents

Abstract

Worldwide road traffic accidents have been increasing. Human behaviors and environmental factors are often responsible for such events. This being a serious public health concern, public health interventions are needed to minimize the rate of road traffic accidents. We aimed to identify broader human behaviors, sociodemographic factors, and environmental factors associated with the risk of road traffic accidents. We searched for the relevant studies in electronic database including PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and World Health Organization global health library. In addition, a manual search was also performed. Findings from scientific literature were presented in a summative form. Young age, male gender, speed, influence of substance, use of mobile phone, driving experience, temperament, attitude, aggression, stress, anxiety, emotionality, fatigue, lack of sleep, and road conditions were found closely associated with a risk of road traffic accidents. Despite having substantial driving training and ability to handling motor vehicles, professional drivers such as bus and taxi drivers are very vulnerable to road traffic accidents. This study reports that the increasing prevalence of road traffic accidents can be addressed significantly by applying behavior change theories. The health belief model was found useful in promoting safer driving.