Experimental Effects of Passenger Pressure and Norms on Simulated Risky Driving Among Teenage Males

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of mortality among teenage drivers. The high crash rate among teenage drivers is generally attributed to lack of experience and risk taking. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of social norms on male teenage driving performance. To examine the effect of teenage passenger presence, peer norms, and peer pressure on driving behavior, fifty-three male teenagers aged 16 to 18 were randomly assigned to drive in a driving simulator with a confederate peer in the passenger seat. Participants were primed to attribute either risk-accepting or risk-averse social norms to the confederate. Mild pressure was exhibited during navigation which was delivered by confederate to convey risk-accepting or risk-averse persona. The results confirmed study hypotheses that teenage drivers engaged in more risky driving behavior in the presence of peer passengers and when pressured to drive in a more risky manner. Exposure of teenage males to a risk-accepting confederate peer who applied mild pressure increased teenage males’ risky simulated driving behavior compared with exposure to a risk-averse confederate peer. These results are consistent with the contention that the variability in teenage risky driving could in part be explained by social influence.