Behavior and Personality Traits Among DUI Arrestees, Nonarrested Impaired Drivers, and Nonimpaired Drivers

Abstract

Eight types of drinking driver groups were compared on several personality and behavior traits. It was found that impaired drivers arrested after an accident or moving violation were significantly higher in hostility, psychopathic deviance, nontraffic arrests, frequency of impaired driving, accidents after drinking, and drinks consumed per week than impaired drivers caught in roadblocks. Neither impaired drivers stopped in roadblocks nor impaired drivers never arrested differed from nonimpaired drinking drivers or nondrinking drivers on most measures examined.

Social and Behavioral Characteristics of Young Adult Drink/Drivers Adjusted for Level of Alcohol Use

“…Personality traits and related factors are associated with risky driving behaviors (Burns and Wilde, 1995;Iversen and Rundmo, 2002;Jonah, 1997;Patil et al, 2006;Ulleberg, 2001), including drink/driving (McMillen et al, 1991(McMillen et al, , 1992. Drink/drivers have been found to possess greater hostility and psychopathic deviance (McMillen et al, 1991), sensation seeking (Donovan et al, 1985), and risk taking (McMillen et al, 1992;Patil et al, 2006) than nondrink/drivers.…”

“…Drink/drivers have been found to possess greater hostility and psychopathic deviance (McMillen et al, 1991), sensation seeking (Donovan et al, 1985), and risk taking (McMillen et al, 1992;Patil et al, 2006) than nondrink/drivers. While this past research provides an insight into personality characteristics related to drink/ driving, it does little to disentangle the influence of these characteristics from those of alcohol use on drink/driving.…”

Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response to stress in male DUI recidivists

“…Clarification of the causal factors underlying repeated driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) has been the focus of intense research interest for decades (Beerman et al, 1988;Lapham et al, 2001;McMillen et al, 1991;Stacy et al, 1991). Concern for repeated DUI (i.e., recidivism) is justified since have been accompanied by a growing appreciation of the considerable heterogeneity in the DUI population (Beirness et al, 1997).…”

Alcohol-impaired driving behavior and sensation-seeking disposition in a college population receiving routine care at campus health services centers

“…Research studies have consistently implicated drivers’ personality characteristics as factors associated with vehicular accidents and have called for a closer examination of the role personality plays in traffic safety (Lewin, 1982a, 1982b; Schwebel et al, 2007). Personality characteristics such as aggressiveness, impaired risk perception, hostility, disinhibition, susceptibility to boredom, and sensation seeking are linked to negative driving outcomes (Burns & Wilde, 1995; Furnham & Saipe, 1993; Greene et al, 2000; Iversen & Rundmo, 2002; Jonah, 1997; McMillen et al, 1991; Wells-Parker et al, 2002). …”