The simple answer to that question is yes. From the time we are a baby, and our motor skills begin to develop so does our perception of danger. When my niece visited just a few days ago with her "just walking" toddler, there was an instant perception of danger of the open fire in the lounge. There were no words needed from Mum, this was ingrained and perfectly natural.
So it begs the question why a 17 year old cannot perceive danger when driving a car.
This morning, on an intensive driving course in Bourne, my pupil wanted to drive out to Stamford using a rural road rather than one of the arguably easier, more forgiving A roads that he could have chosen. He actually deliberately chose this route as he wanted to experience driving on a rural road in pouring rain.
So, after raising the question to him of any potential hazards that may be coming our way, his response was in the negative. In my mind I am thinking of increased seperation gaps between our vehicle and others; reduced vision out of the windscreens and side mirrors due to the rainfall; the increased mental fatigue due to the effort required driving in rain; the potential of aquaplaning and the prospect of having large pools of water on the road surface; the importance of tread depth on tyres and correct tyre pressures for traction; the prospect of spray suddenly hitting the front windscreen from a passing vehicle that temporarily reduces vision; the possibility of sliding on a country road bend due to the wet and how it would be sensible to adjust speed and gears on the approach so that there is no braking or gas on the bend for maximum stability. But despite the fact that this pupil had just passed his theory test 4 days earlier, none of these potential hazards came from him, in fact nothing at all came from him regarding how this journey was going to go.
Unsurprisingly, straight away I could sense that he was not adjusting his speed at all to adapt to the driving conditions, so in the interests of safety, I instantly intervened and raised his awareness of the potential hazards associated with the speed he was travelling in the rainy weather.
Any change?
Marginal.
He kept on driving through the large puddles on the left near the verge. So I intervened and raised his awareness of what he was feeling in his hands through the wheels and steering wheel as he drove through the puddles; the potential for loss of traction, driving off the road, the possibility of driving through large potholes that the puddles could conceal. We discussed coping mechanisms, he spoke of reduced speed, I spoke of changes in position to avoid the puddles.
Any change?
None.
We pull over. We talk about the perceived danger here, and there was no perceived danger. We talked about the "thrill" of driving through these large puddles at speed, and how a vehicle can lose traction in a second at these faster speeds and be off the road. I ask him how he thinks I feel at this moment.... "I don't know, could you tell me?". I most certainly could, "I am shitting myself here".
From the age of a baby, through pre-school years, into primary school years, yet further into secondary school - all these years this pupil of mine would have come across danger. Danger to himself, or his family or friends. He will have experience of perceived danger relating to amusement parks, Call of Duty video games, riding a bike on a road, playing a prank on a friend, riding a 2 wheel scooter, walking alone in the dark, learning how to swim, crossing a busy road. There will have been dozens and dozens of instances where he was either aware of the impending danger and managed the situation, was unaware of the impending danger and suddenly made aware of the near miss or unaware of the impending danger and learnt the hard way. But, one thing is for sure, he has not spent the first 17 years of his life wrapped up in cotton wool, living a "risk-free" existence. As such, why on earth when I raise his awareness of the impending danger of driving as he is in the heavy rain, is he not adapting his behaviour?
We get back home.
Me "How did that go?"
Him "Ok"
Me "Talk me through how you felt when you drove on that road in that pouring rain"
Him "Yea ok. It is harder driving in the rain"
Me "It is? How?"
Him "Well I could just feel it sometimes as I drove through a puddle, even in the villages, in the 30's I felt it on my hands, through the steering wheel"
Me "How did it make you feel?"
Him "Ok"
Me "Did you perceive danger?"
Him "No"
I then spoke to him about the perception of danger. I in effect, steered his brain into the thought of what danger means to each of us, and how some people can perceive danger more than others. He immediately took a defensive response with, "Oh you mean I should slow down a bit more, and steer away from the puddles?". Well..... is that what I mean?
No, that is not what I mean.
That would be a coping mechanism for dealing with the dangerous situation that he had just been in, but what I am referring to is his ability to even KNOW that he is in a dangerous situation. I made the point that today, I was present with him in the car, overseeing to make sure we did not crash, that both of us lived to have the discussion that we were. But crucially what I was raising was the fact that he himself had not imagined these dangerous hazards when he chose the route he did, and more than that, even when I raised his awareness of the dangerous hazards, he did not heed my warning and adapt his behaviour despite my giving him the guidance of how to adapt. All of us behave in a manner that reflects how we think and feel.
Unconsciously incompetent.
What I am keen to develop in this young man is his ability to start identifying risk, assessing it, making appropriate decisions based on that assessment and reflecting on the outcomes so as to refine this skill-set.
So no, the skill being developed here is one of self-awareness, not one of regurgitating a sentence about slower speeds in the rain - regurgitating answers in this manner is best left to school exams or dare I say, theory tests; what I am wanting to hear and see is a bit of deep meaningful reflection that will hold this chap in good stead when I am long gone out of his life. How will he respond when he first drives in mist or fog for the first time, or plans to drive with 3 mates to a party, or buys his first powerful car?
I can't MAKE my pupils wear seat belts after they pass the driving test, I can't force them to drive to conditions rather than maximum speed limits, the influence I have on them is tiny compared to the influences of others in their inner circle. What I can attempt to do however, is raise his awareness to realise that it will be him and him alone who makes the choices of how he drives a motor vehicle - now that is some responsibility.
The Chief Examiner of the DVSA recently made mention of this subject in a driving instructor conference explaining about the frontal lobe development in the brain of 17-25 year old (particularly males) with the consequent affect of limiting "anticipated regret" (not considering consequences of actions)
Tom Ingram is the Owner of BIG TOM Driving School
PAYG trainee driving instructor training Bookings: 0775 607 1464
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