Gender and age differences in risk taking behaviour in road traffic crashes

Aim: The aim of the present study was to assess drivers’ gender and age related differences in the associations between high risk taking behaviour and Road Traffic Crashes in Qatar. Study Design: This is a cross sectional study. Subjects and Methods: A multistage stratified cluster sampling was performed. Of 2400 drivers aged 20 years and above approached, 1824 drivers agreed to participate in the survey (76%). The study was based on a face to face interview with a designed questionnaire including Driver Behaviour Questionnaire (DBQ) along with socio-demographic variables. Results: Of the studied drivers, 74.7% were males and 25.8% were Qataris. Majority of the drivers were in the age group 30-39 years (35%), followed by drivers below 30 years (31.5%). Using mobile phone while driving (51.1%) and excessive speeding (38.8%) were significantly higher in male drivers (p<0.001) as compared to females. No significant difference was observed in items of violation between both the genders except items on “disregard the speed limits at night” (30.5% vs 19.7%; p=0.041) and “disregard the speed limits on motor way” (25.6% vs 19.7%; p=0.011). There were no significant differences observed in items of errors and the most frequent reported error was “queuing to turn right onto a main road and hitting the car in front” (21.8% and 21.4%). Also, no significant difference was found in items of lapses between genders except “realizing that you have no clear recollection of the road you are driving” with significantly a higher proportion in female drivers (17.8% vs 22.1%; p=0.041). TV (76.6% vs 81.8%; p=0.019) and radio (71% vs 78.2%; p=0.003) were reported as an effective source of road safety campaign by male and female drivers. Gender, driving experience, DBQ items such as violations lapses and errors showed significant correlation with accident involvement. Conclusion: No significant difference was observed between genders in DBQ items violation, lapses and errors. Most of the DBQ items were more prevalent in female drivers as compared to male drivers.