The driving behavior survey: Scale construction and validation
Abstract
Although long recognized in the clinical literature, problematic behavior characteristic of anxious drivers has received little empirical attention. The current research details development of a measure of anxious driving behavior conducted across three studies. Factor analytic techniques identified three dimensions of maladaptive behaviors across three college samples: anxiety-based performance deficits, exaggerated safety/caution behavior, and anxiety-related hostile/aggressive behavior. Performance deficits evidenced convergent associations with perceived driving skill and were broadly related to driving fear. Safety/caution behaviors demonstrated convergence with overt travel avoidance, although this relationship was inconsistent across studies. Safety/caution scores were associated specifically with accident- and social-related driving fears. Hostile/aggressive behaviors evidenced convergent relationships with driving anger and were associated specifically with accident-related fear. Internal consistencies were adequate, although some test-retest reliabilities were marginal in the unselected college sample. These data provide preliminary evidence for utility of the measure for both research and clinical practice. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd.
Publication Title
Journal of Anxiety Disorders
Recommended Citation
Clapp, J., Olsen, S., Beck, J., Palyo, S., Grant, D., Gudmundsdottir, B., & Marques, L. (2011). The driving behavior survey: Scale construction and validation. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 25 (1), 96-105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2010.08.008
