744 - A MENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVE ON DRIVER BEHAVIOURS AND ROAD RAGE INCIDENTS OF MOTORCYCLE COURIERS IN TÜRKİYE

Session: D13S004 - Personality, Emotions, and Mental Health in Transportation 1
AUTHORS:
Aktas Alev (Sivas Cumhuriyet University ~ Sivas ~ Turkey)
Abstract text:
The growing number of delivery riders in urban areas is also becoming a major concern for traffic safety in Türkiye. A limited number of studies have examined the occupational challenges that these riders face in traffic and their impact on mental health, from the perspective of traffic and transport psychology. The purpose of this study was to examine in detail aberrant and positive behaviours of male motorcycle couriers in Türkiye, as well as their road rage incidents, from a mental health perspective (including the presence of psychopathological symptoms and consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and caffeine). Ethical approval was obtained. A total of 43 motorcycle couries with a mean age 28.53 (SD=7.15) years completed an online survey consisting of the Short Driver Behaviour Questionnaire (S-DBQ) and the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI), as well as a questionnaire addressing demographic information, work experience, and tobacco, alcohol, and caffeine consumption. In this concurrent mixed-design, participants were also asked semi-structured questions to explore their experiences with road rage. Data collection process is ongoing. The collected data were transferred to SPSS 29 and MAXQDA, and analyses were conducted using quantitative and qualitative techniques. Preliminary findings suggest that 81.4% of participants smoking and 18.6% consume alcohol regularly. Significant correlations were found between BSI scores and frequency of caffeine consumption, and between S-DBQ (p<.05). Over the past six months, 32.6% of participants reported experiencing low-level road rage almost daily, while 16.3% admitted to being perpetrators. Furthermore, for both victims and perpetrators of high-level road rage, this rate was 18.6%. Thematic findings highlighted violations, verbal abuse, physical violence, traffic accidents, and legal incidents. The findings emphasize the need to evaluate motorcycle couriers' psychological symptoms and driver behaviours to enhance traffic safety, suggesting that in Türkiye they face substantial road risks and insufficient legal and occupational regulations.