Irshad Ali Shaikh, Masood Ali Shaikh, Anila Kamal, Sobia Masood.
Road rage behavior: experiences of university students.
J Coll Physicians Surg Pak Jan ;15(12):830-1.

A cross-sectional survey was conducted among university students in Islamabad to understand their behavior and experiences pertaining to road rage. A sample size of 216 for each gender group was calculated, based on anticipated prevalence rate of road rage behavior and experiences at 10% and 5% in males and females, respectively. Using 95% confidence level and assuming a hypothetical difference between two population proportions of road rage behavior and experiences, with absolute precision of 5% on either side of proportion, five hundred and thirty-two students (272 males and 260 females) were selected by convenience sampling and requested to complete the questionnaire. RESULTS: The mean age of respondents was 24 years (standard deviation = 4.5). Three hundred and fifty-six (66.9%) of them were enrolled in masters program, 138 (25.9%) were M.Phil students, and the rest were doctoral students. About 30% i.e. 159 respondents either themselves as passengers or their fellow passengers had experienced being shouted, cursed or made rude gestures at, in the past six months. Similar rage was experienced by 92 (17.3%) of respondents while they were driving a vehicle; vehicle was defined as a car, van, truck, bus or motorcycle, and threats of personal physical violence or physical damage to the vehicle were experienced by 60 (11.3%) respondents in the past six months, while they were in a vehicle as a passenger. Regarding perpetration of road rage, 120 (22.6%) respondents admitted that while riding in a vehicle, they have shouted, cursed, or made rude gestures toward either a driver or passenger in another vehicle, in the past six months. However, only 26 (4.9%) respondents admitted that while they were driving a vehicle, they had threatened to hurt a driver or passenger in another vehicle or had threatened to damage their vehicle in the past six months. CONCLUSION: This is the first study on road rage in Pakistan; results of various indices ranging from 10% or more in university students i.e. an educated group of youth are disturbing and underscore the need for population-based studies to determine road rage behavior and experiences including its contribution to burden of traffic related injuries in the country.

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