Anger And Your Driving

Are you driving under the influence of impaired emotions?

Dateline: December 4, 2002. Orange County ,California. A 29 year old man was shot to death, an apparent victim of road rage. According to newspaper accounts, he had a reputation for never backing down from a fight.

The man and his half brother were heading home from a plumbing job when the trouble began. Apparently, three men in another car zoomed in front of their car. These men started hurling profanities and flashing obscene gestures at the brothers, who returned the insults.

Things escalated until a gun was pulled. Rather than backing down, the man got out of his car and began walking toward the gunman. Two shots rang out, missing the man who then continued to walk toward the gunman until he was shot and killed.

While this tragic incidence is illustrative of an extreme case of aggressive driving, there are thousands of lesser cases in the United States yearly. According to he AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, incidents of aggressive driving have increased by 7% every year since 1990; however, few courts mandate anger management treatment for traffic offenders.

FIVE ZONES OF AGGRESSIVE DRIVING

Research by Dr. Leon James at the University of Hawaii reveals five categories of aggressive driving. Which zone do you or a loved one fall in?

THE UNFRIENDLY ZONE - Example: closing ranks to deny someone entering your lane because you're frustrated or upset.

HOSTILE ZONE - Example: Tailgating to pressure another driver to go faster or get out of the way.

VIOLENT ZONE- Example: Making visible obscene gestures at another driver.

LESS MAYHEM ZONE- Example: Pursuing other cars in a chase because of provocation or insult.

MAJOR MAYHEM ZONE - Example: Getting out of the car and beating or battering someone as a result of a road exchange.

DO AGGRESSIVE DRIVERS SEE THEMSELVES AS SUCH?

According to Dr. James and his research team, drivers who consider themselves as almost perfect in excellence (with no room to improve) also confessed to significantly more aggressiveness than drivers who see themselves as still improving.

What this means is that despite their self-confessed aggressiveness, 2 out of 3 drivers still insist on seeing themselves as near perfect drivers with almost no room to improve. These drivers see "the other guy" as the problem and thus do not look at their own aggressive driving behavior.

WHAT CAUSES AGGRESSIVE DRIVING BEHAVIOR?

While there is no one standard definition for aggressive driving, many psychologists see anger as the root cause of the problem. Regardless of the provocation or the circumstances related to problems on the road, it is ultimately our emotional state, our stress levels and our thinking patterns that either cause us to drive aggressively or lead us to be the victims of others.

In short, many of get us get in trouble because we are driving under the influence of impaired emotions, especially anger.

Like drunk driving, aggressive driving is more than a simple action or carelessness; it is a behavioral choice that drivers make.

It is normal and natural to feel angry when certain events frustrate us on the road. But, how do you deal with these angry feelings to cope with the situation more effectively?

TWO WAYS TO COPE WITH IMPAIRED DRIVING EMOTIONS:

Research clearly shows that reducing stress and changing your self-talk can help you cope.

1.REDUCE YLUR STRESS. Driving is emotionally challenging because unexpected things happen constantly with which we must cope. We often drive under the pressure of time, or the pressure of congestion and delays which add to our general stress level.

Suggestions include listening to relaxing music or educational tapes on the road, leaving 15 minutes sooner, and getting up earlier so you are less rushed.

2. CHANGE YOUR PERSPECTIVE with different self-talk. As a result of earlier life experiences, we all have "automatic" thoughts that are generated by our mind when certain "triggers" occur when driving. We can change our perspective and thus our angry feelings by consciously changing this "self-talk." For instance, if cut off in traffic think something like ?that "jerk" may actually be a single mother who worked nine hours that day and is rushing home to cook dinner, help with homework, do the laundry and spend a few precious moments with her children."

CONCLUSIONS: If driving under the influence of impaired emotions, you can make a personal decision to cope with your angry feelings in a more effective way. This will help you avoid aggressive driving or becoming the victim of another aggressive driver. Reducing your stress level and learning to change your self-talk are effective and powerful tools to cope with the challenges of driving in our fast-paced society.

About The Author

Dr Tony Fiore, The Anger Coach, is a psychologist, and anger management trainer in Southern California.To subscribe to his free newsletter, "Taming the Anger Bee" visit his website at http://www.angercoach.com

drtony@angercoach.com

---

Envisioning Your Ideal Self

In my work as a professional coach, I've had the... Read More

Aging

Aging is a matter of the mind.The years may creep... Read More

The Ultimate In Positive Thinking?

I will never forget an evening in 2003, when I... Read More

10 Tips to Cope with Negative Emotions at Work

It's a fact of life - if you want to... Read More

A Major Block to Constructive Change

A Yale University study a few years ago revealed that... Read More

Individualized Positive Affirmations for Improving Self-Esteem

Positive self-esteem is very important if not crucial to our... Read More

Potency

No, not that kind.Power and potential are synonymous. Your ultimate... Read More

Top Ten Ways to a More Positive Outlook on Winter

Year after year I find more and more individuals saying... Read More

10 Tips to Improve Your Self Esteem

Striving to improve our self esteem is on everybody's mind.... Read More

Self Confidence and the Way You Use Your Words

The way we use language can have a huge impact... Read More

Let Your Subconscious Be Your Guide... Oh Really? Not!

Do you ever feel sorry for yourself? Do you ever... Read More

Just Another Day

During a Messenger chat session the other day, I asked... Read More

Creating an Emotional Retreat

Emotions have the tendency to take over our actions and... Read More

Keep Your Cool

Know your limits. Accept what you can't change and let... Read More

Is Your Glass (Ceiling) Half Empty or Half Full?

The infamous "glass ceiling" is blamed for business issues for... Read More

Welcoming the Unexpected

As I walked my dogs recently on what "should" have... Read More

Never Quitting is an Attitude

Never Quitting Equals Success Most people who achieve fortunes in... Read More

Instant Frequency Boosters: 10 Fast and Simple Ways to Raise Your Vibration

When you're feeling "low," or out of the flow, it's... Read More

Perfect to the Penny

At some point in our careers, we may find ourselves... Read More

How To Radically Improve Your Everyday Experience Of Life In Two Simple Steps

Can you do something for me?Tell me?Please don't think tomorrow.What?Yeah,... Read More

Power of Positive Beliefs

I am an educator as well as a coach and... Read More

Why You Must Learn to Forgive for the Sake of Your Own Happiness

Your ability to forgive those who have hurt you in... Read More

Failure is Celebration Time

Failure is my favorite subject. For I have spent my... Read More

Garbage Words In - Garbage Thinking Out

"At birth, a baby's brain contains 100 billion neurons, roughly... Read More

Growth From Discontent: Lifes Way Of Giving You A Little Push

That strange, gut-wrenching feeling you have is not the sushi... Read More

In The Midst Of A Storm, Theres Something More!

Have you truly tried and still failed? Have you pushed... Read More

Creating Your Desires

Say aloud:I AM. I AM Consciousness. I AM the creator... Read More

Thinking Your Way To Success: Materializing Your Goals Through The Power of Thought

THOUGHTS are powerful. The power of THOUGHTS cannot be underestimated.... Read More

How to Stay Positive in a Negative World

Gail's StoryGail is a friend of mine and she was... Read More

Are Your ANTs Taking Over Your Life?

One of the first things that I work on with... Read More

Change and Transition - 10 Steps to Surviving Change Elegantly

If I say the word "CHANGE" how do you feel?... Read More

Gratitude: the ICE that Fills Your Half Empty Glass!

Are you completely happy in your life right now? Honestly?... Read More

Its Okay to Be Negative Sometimes!

Lately, I've been hearing that it's not okay to have... Read More