Study Finds Link between TBI and Road Rage Incidents

 Posted on December 00,0000 in Car Accidents

A recent study found that people who suffer from traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are more likely to experience episodes of road rage. The study was conducted by doctors from St. Michael&s Hospital in Toronto and published in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention.

There were approximately 4,000 drivers, between the ages of 18 and 97, who participated in the study. Drivers who had suffered from at least one TBI reported an increased number of road rage incidents than those drivers who had not suffered from any type of head injuries. The study defined TBI has one where the victim had lost consciousness for at least five minutes, or had been hospitalized for a 24 hour period.

For the study, road rage was defined as incidents where the person made threats to physically harm another driver or passenger, or had made threats to damage another driver’s vehicle.

The study also found that drivers who had suffered a TBI were reported more incidents of being involved in motor vehicle accidents than those drivers who had not.

Road rage, or aggressive driving, is a serious problem. According to national statistics, aggressive driving causes more than half of the fatal vehicle accidents which occur every year. Driving behaviors such as tailgating, not heeding to traffic regulations or signs, racing with another driver, and confronting other drivers all qualify as aggressive driving and put others in danger.

Another study examined more than 10,000 road rage incidents which occurred over a seven year period and discovered that these incidents resulted in 218 murders and an additional 12,610 injuries.

There are ways to help avoid becoming involved in road rage incidents. Some of the recommendations from vehicle safety advocates include:

• Do not cut other drivers off. If you are merging into another lane, be sure you have enough room to do so and always use your turn signal;
• Do not drive slowly in the far left lane of the road. If another driver wants to pass you, move over to the right lane, even if you are traveling the speed limit;
• Do not tailgate. Always make sure there are at least two car lengths between your vehicle and the one in front of you; and
• No matter what another driver does, even if they are completely in the wrong, do not make obscene hand gestures towards them, or any other gesture which could put them on the defensive. Even shaking your head could cause another driver to escalate the situation into a case of road rage.

If you sustain injuries caused by an aggressive driver, contact an experienced Lake County injury attorney to find out what legal recourse you may have against that driver for your injuries.

Sources:

www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-05/smh-oaw050515.php

www.aaafoundation.org/aggressive-driving?button=AggressiveDriving&gclid=CjwKEAjw67SvBRC1m5zPv4GboAUSJAB6MJlkJzNSQYnlq_cZ9UosaKL6m-xvFmMvRNQuADCyj4yJVBoC0Dnw_wcB

www.aaafoundation.org/sites/default/files/RoadRageBrochure.pdf