How do fatalistic beliefs affect the attitudes and pedestrian behaviours of road users in different countries? A cross-cultural study.

How do fatalistic beliefs affect the attitudes and pedestrian behaviours of road users in different countries? A cross-cultural study. Accid Anal Prev. 2020 Mar 06;139:105491 Authors: McIlroy RC, Kokwaro GO, Wu J, Jikyong U, Nam VH, Hoque MS, Preston JM, Plant KL, Stanton NA Abstract This paper reports on an exploratory investigation of the influence of five different fatalistic belief constructs (divine control, luck, helplessness, internality, and general fatalism) on three classes of self-reported pedestrian behaviours (memory and attention errors, rule violations, and aggressive behaviours) and on respondents' general attitudes to road safety, and how relationships between constructs differ across countries. A survey of over 3400 respondents across Bangladesh, China, Kenya, Thailand, the UK, and Vietnam revealed a similar pattern for most of the relationships assessed, in most countries; those who reported higher fatalistic beliefs or more external attributions of causality also reported performing riskier pedestrian behaviours and holding more dangerous attitudes to road safety. The strengths of relationships between constructs did, however, differ by country, behaviour type, and aspect of fatalism. One particularly notable country difference was that in Bangladesh and, to a lesser extent, in Kenya, a stronger belief in divine influence over one's life was associated with safer attitudes and behaviours, whereas where significant...
Source: Accident; Analysis and Prevention. - Category: Accident Prevention Authors: Tags: Accid Anal Prev Source Type: research