title: Street racing video games and risk-taking driving: An Internet survey of automobile enthusiasts.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among risky driving attitudes, self-perceptions as a risky driver, playing of "drive'em up" (which rewarded players for frequent traffic and other violations) and "circuit" racing video games as well as self-reported risky driving through a web-based survey of car and racing club members in relation to a socio-cognitive model of the effects of racing video game playing.
  
  
  METHODS
  An Internet questionnaire was developed and included: (1) self-perceptions as a risky driver scales (Driver Thrill Seeking and Competitive Attitude Toward Driving); (2) attitudes regarding street racing; (3) street racing video game playing, and (4) self-reported risky driving (Risk-Taking Driving Scale). A sequential logistic regression was performed entering age and driving exposure as control variables in the first block, self-perceptions as a risky driver in the second block, attitudes in the third block and playing "drive'em up" and "circuit" racing games in the last block to examine their effects on self-reported risk-taking driving.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 503 survey respondents were included in the analyses and only 20% reported any risk-taking driving. Higher score on the Competitive Attitude Toward Driving Scale, more positive attitudes toward street racing, and more frequent reported playing of "drive'em up" video games were associated with higher odds on the self-reported Risk-Taking Driving Scale. However, the Driver Thrill Seeking Scale and "circuit" video game playing failed to predict self-reported risk-taking driving.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Self-perceptions as a risky driver, positive attitudes toward risky driving and "drive'em up" street-racing games, but not "circuit" racing games, are associated with increased risk-taking driving. These findings are congruent with experimental studies in which games that reward driving violations increased risk taking, suggesting that risk taking may be a function of type of street racing game played by affecting self-perceptions as a risky driver.
authors.affiliation: Family Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, Dr. Don Rix Clinical Skills Building, London, ON, Canada. evingili@uwo.ca
authors.forename: Evelyn
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Vingilis
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Seeley
authors.forename: David L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Wiesenthal
authors.forename: Christine M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Wickens
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fischer
authors.forename: Robert E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Mann
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001290:Attitude; D001334:Automobile Driving; D003163:Competitive Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009864:Ontario; D012309:Risk-Taking; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D018910:Video Games