The 4th in a Series of Commentary from Guest Columnist Chris Goulart
This next myth should be easy to debunk. All safety professionals that I have known over the years have praised the value of defensive driving as a great safe driving strategy. Hogwash, I say.
Just think of the classic defensive driver…, an older driver who drives very, very slowly and carefully. A driver whose routine speed is 5 to 10 miles an hour below the speed limit. A driver who slows down dramatically to make a turn into a parking lot. A driver who comes to a complete stop when reaching the end of an access ramp that leads on to a highway. A driver who drives so slowly and carefully that people will do anything to accelerate around or past him. Is defensive driving really safe driving? NO!!!!
When well meaning safety professionals use the term “Defensive Driving” they are committing two wrongs. First, they are showing that they believe whatever catchy phrases are out there for safety. Things like “Safety is Job #1“; “Defensive Driving Saves Lives“; “Click-it or Ticket“, “Wear a hard had unless you’re hard headed” or “A funeral is more expensive than the cost of the right PPE“. Few people even agree with these slogans and even fewer are motivated by them. Ultimately, all you have is a catchy phrase that people repeat over and over for years, but gets no behavior change. If you really wanted to get people to wear their seatbelts you would do more than going around and saying “click-it or ticket“. Remember instead of saying “Safety is our most important value” you might as well say “Safety is our most important slogan”. (Daniels)
Second, the use of catchy slogans shows we don’t take our profession seriously. By trying to use glib catch phrases, especially ones that are incorrect like “Defensive Driving” we are demonstrating that we do not care enough to create something meaningful.
So back to this specific myth; defensive driving = safe driving. What is it that makes a good driver? If you have experience with the Smith SystemTM or Liberty Mutual’s Decision DrivingTM then you have a pretty good idea about the answer. Safe drivers have the knowledge to drive safely and exhibit the proper behaviors.
The good driver uses a well honed sense of sight, sound and feeling to get input about their driving environment. The driver then combines this input with a combination of knowledge, experience, and attitudes to create an output…driving behavior. The only important aspect of how people drive is the behavior they exhibit while operating a motor vehicle.
In the previous paragraph I mentioned that the behavior people exhibit when driving is a function of their knowledge, experience, and attitudes, when combined with the input from the driving environment. The knowledge and experience components are the factors where most companies place their focus. Attitude generally gets overlooked, and to the detriment of the overall process results.
For example, driver training is a multi-million dollar industry. A wealth of organizations exist that will help you train your drivers to operate safely. These driver trainers are often very accomplished in both training techniques and the intricacies of their particular methodology. There are also many materials available for the informal driver trainer. Between pamphlets, training videos, and computer based training, much effort is expanded to improve the knowledge of drivers. The real question regarding driver training is… do most drivers lack the knowledge to operate a motor vehicle safely? The answer to that my friends is, no. Rarely do professional drivers or employees who drive regularly have a knowledge gap in the rules and requirements to drive safely.
Also, many companies look extensively and exhaustively at driver experience. Trucking companies will not usually hire drivers without two years of experience operating a vehicle over 10,000 pounds, GVW. The common question is how do you get experience if no one will hire you without experience. Also, most companies will review a driver’s MVA to determine if he has a history of safe driving or not. All of this is important, but it misses on the critical aspect… attitude.
The role of attitude is often overlooked. Indeed, the concept of attitude is very difficult to define and even harder to quantify. It is well known that when a driver is in a situation where he has just been cut-off. He is more likely to engage in an aggressive act towards another driver. Conversely, a driver who has just been allowed to merge onto a busy freeway is much more likely to extend the same courtesy to another driver.
Attitude has a very important function in the role of behavior exhibited by drivers. Certainly it is every bit as important as knowledge and experience. As safety professionals we need to encourage our drivers to exhibit good behaviors when driving. How do we do this? By presenting them with feedback about their driving behaviors. This can best be accomplished by in-person observation. The use of electronic data monitors can augment this, but by far and away, the best means to accomplish improving the behavior of drivers is through the use of focused feedback.
Feedback has been shown to clearly change and improve behavior. Providing feedback to drivers in person in a timely manner will reinforce safe behaviors and help to minimize unsafe actions. This is the only true way to help improve the safety on our roads. Feedback and behavior management will work where slogans and tired training practices won’t.
The take away from this myth is two fold. First, safety professionals need to avoid catchy slogans that sound good but only serve to trivialize our profession. Second, if the goal is to improve performance, understanding what motivates people to exhibit certain behaviors must be understood before unsafe behavior is changed to safe behavior.
So remember… “Arrive Alive… Don’t Drink and Come Up with Stupid Safety Slogans”.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I don’t disagree entirely with Mr. Goulart’s basic premise that as safety professionals we have to take an active roll in eliminating hazards and that catch phrases are relatively pointless (regardless of the hazard being addressed). I call that lazy safety; much like making a construction project 100% hard hat without taking the time to evaluate existing hazards. “Just make everyone wear a hard hat and we’ll be fine!” I do have a problem with his opening paragraph about the “classic defensive driver”. He didn’t describe a defensive driver he described a poor driver. I was a police officer for 25 years and during that time came into contact (not with my squad car thankfully) with many different types of drivers. We also had defensive driving training. Our training was aimed at safety at higher speeds (45pmh and above) and was conducted on a closed runway at Selfridge. The car would start out in the morning with new brakes and tires and need both replaced at the end of the day, just to give you an idea of that we did. What we learned really is what a car won’t do at that speeds. I think Mr. Goulart makes a great point when he describes the differnce between “operating” a vehicle and “driving” one. Unfortunately we allow far too much operating and way too little driving.
As a side note on a trip this past weekend on I-75 from West Branch to Troy we noticed a specific vehicle would pass us then a few minutes later we’d pass him (it was a guy). I had my cruise set so I know my speed wasn’t changing – the difference?? When we passed him he was texting (or at least playing with his phone), when he passed us the phone was nowhere in sight. Funny how that works….
Chris is absolutely correct – on two issues raised!! “Decision Driving” is the correct terminology and is a fantastic program that produces outstanding results and feedback. Of course, as with any program, it must be implemented correctly and maintained if it is to succeed. I have had the honor(?) of working with Chris on several DD courses over that past few years. If you haven’t tried this (or similar) training, I highly recommend it.
He is also right on concerning catchy safety slogans – or any slogans. While we do succeed in getting employees to adopt these slogans, the slogans alone yield ZERO results. If we do not lay out the “road map” and supply the necessary support from leadership, materials, training, etc. to achieve “Safety is Job #1″ , “Target ZERO” or any other popular slogan that is out there today, then we are simply arming our TEAMS with yet another useless phrase to remember. Don’t get me wrong, we use some of these same slogans, but they are simply as reminders and are not expected to “change the world” by themselves.
Another good article, Chris. Keep them coming.
TWessel