Driving Anger Expression: The Predictive Role of Forgiveness and Empathy

Description

Page: 280-290

M. S. Lakshitha and P. Padmakumari (Department of Psychology, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru, Karnataka)

Road traffic accidents are found to be the leading cause of death worldwide. In India, Road traffic injuries claim nearly 1.3 lakh lives annually, and aggressive driving is found to be one of the leading causes of motor vehicle accidents. Despite its importance, only a few studies have investigated this area in India. Aggressive driving has been widely studied through driving anger and driving anger expression. Studies outside the context of driving have demonstrated that forgiveness and empathy are significantly associated with reducing anger and aggressive behaviors. The present study examines the role of forgiveness, empathy, and driving anger on driving anger expression, along with examining their gender differences. A total of 310 participants (187 males, 123 females) between the ages 20-35 completed self-report measures of driving anger, driving anger expression, forgiveness, and empathy. Mann-Whitney U results showed significant gender differences in all four variables. Spearman correlations indicated a significant negative association of forgiveness and empathy with driving anger and anger expression. Step-wise regression revealed that cognitive empathy, driving anger, and specific dimensions of forgiveness (forgiveness of self or situations) predicted maladaptive driving anger expression, and only driving anger predicted adaptive expression of anger. The current study enhances the understanding of the role of forgiveness and empathy in aggressive driving and opens up the possibility of developing interventions to reduce aggressive driving.