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
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 relationships existed in the other countries the opposite was true. In some cases, the effect of fatalistic beliefs on self-reported behaviours was mediated through attitudes, in other cases the effect was direct. Results are discussed in terms of the need to consider the effect of locus of control and attributions of causality on attitudes and behaviours, and the need to understand the differences between countries therein.
Attitudes, Fatalism, Low- and middle-income countries, Pedestrian behavior, Traffic safety
McIlroy, Rich C.
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Kokwaro, Gilbert O.
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Wu, Jianping
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Jikyong, Usanisa
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Hoar, Nam Vu
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Hoque, Shamsul
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Preston, John
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Plant, Katherine
3638555a-f2ca-4539-962c-422686518a78
Stanton, Neville
351a44ab-09a0-422a-a738-01df1fe0fadd
May 2020
McIlroy, Rich C.
68e56daa-5b0b-477e-a643-3c7b78c1b85d
Kokwaro, Gilbert O.
f1f598fa-e2f2-42a6-976b-d250360282b4
Wu, Jianping
db314ad9-d011-4c77-9ae1-b190f82fd013
Jikyong, Usanisa
dd5b6098-0a29-4874-86f3-26c112401306
Hoar, Nam Vu
03bc69e4-edad-4680-a36f-47699410eade
Hoque, Shamsul
e32226ec-97cd-46f5-bd10-74aa7fbadf52
Preston, John
04420c42-c7cf-4fd5-a6e2-336a2e6a685f
Plant, Katherine
3638555a-f2ca-4539-962c-422686518a78
Stanton, Neville
351a44ab-09a0-422a-a738-01df1fe0fadd
McIlroy, Rich C., Kokwaro, Gilbert O., Wu, Jianping, Jikyong, Usanisa, Hoar, Nam Vu, Hoque, Shamsul, Preston, John, Plant, Katherine and Stanton, Neville
(2020)
How do fatalistic beliefs affect the attitudes and pedestrian behaviours of road users in different countries? A cross-cultural study.
Accident Analysis & Prevention, 139, [105491].
(doi:10.1016/j.aap.2020.105491).
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 relationships existed in the other countries the opposite was true. In some cases, the effect of fatalistic beliefs on self-reported behaviours was mediated through attitudes, in other cases the effect was direct. Results are discussed in terms of the need to consider the effect of locus of control and attributions of causality on attitudes and behaviours, and the need to understand the differences between countries therein.
Text
Fatalism and self-reported pedestrian behaviour pre-pub version
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 28 February 2020
e-pub ahead of print date: 6 March 2020
Published date: May 2020
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
This research was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR; 16/137/122) using UK aid from the UK Government to support global health research. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the UK Department of Health and Social Care. We would like to thank Omar Faruqe Hamim, Shahnewaz Hasanat-E-Rabbi, Mithun Debnath, Kezhen Hu, Linyang Wang, Mingyu Liu, James Oyoo, Sylvia Anyika, Dinh Do Duy, Rish Arora, and Tayyib Goolamallee for their help in gathering data.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Elsevier Ltd
Keywords:
Attitudes, Fatalism, Low- and middle-income countries, Pedestrian behavior, Traffic safety
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 438771
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/438771
ISSN: 0001-4575
PURE UUID: 38f051b2-82f5-439a-af64-682b9dc462ea
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Date deposited: 24 Mar 2020 17:30
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 05:24
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Contributors
Author:
Gilbert O. Kokwaro
Author:
Jianping Wu
Author:
Usanisa Jikyong
Author:
Nam Vu Hoar
Author:
Shamsul Hoque
Author:
John Preston
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