ABSTRACT
Several studies have analysed the relationship between carrying passengers, speed and accident involvement but few studies have analysed the processes behind how young drivers are influenced by passengers whilst driving. This paper reports a quasi-experimental study with an instrumented car equipped with different instruments measuring speed, g-forces, distance ahead etc. Inside the car video cameras and microphones had been installed to record conversations and actions. 12 drivers drove a pre-planned route twice, once with passengers and once without. The results showed that the passengers put drivers under pressure to do different dangerous actions, but in most cases the driver resisted this pressure. The mean values for speed were higher when driving alone than driving with passengers. However, the differences were not significant. Findings are interpreted with reference to the characteristics of the subjects selected for this study.
