Positive reinforcement during driver training could lead to a more enjoyable time on the road, says a University of Canberra academic.
After examining the responses of more than 300 university students aged between 18- and 25-years-old, Lucienne Kleisen said the majority of young drivers were motivated by the possibility of adverse consequences.
''What I found with young drivers is if they drive safely, they do it mostly for negative reasons,'' she said. ''They say they're afraid of fines or crashing.
''I think it would be good if we drove safely because we wanted to create a nice atmosphere on the road.''
Dr Kleisen said the introduction of positive reinforcement in driver training could help curb some of the rebellious behaviour seen in some young drivers.
''If you look at road safety messages now, a lot of them [the messages] are negative,'' she said.
''They all say 'don't' and some people get a bit rebellious from messages like that.''
Dr Kleisen is also examining the idea of positive incentives to boost driver compliance rather than continued punishment for poor behaviour.
''Instead of losing points, what if you've been safe for a year and it's cheaper to renew your licence,'' she said. ''It would work a lot better than if you tell people not to do things.''
Dr Kleisen said her research had uncovered the notion of ''car karma'', a common belief among the young drivers she dealt with.
''They think that if they're nice to someone in the morning then they think it's likely that their drive will be pleasant,'' she said.
''They believe if they're nice, good things will happen.''
Dr Kleisen's research also found that young male drivers were less flexible than their female peers, meaning they were less likely to adapt sufficiently to changing driving circumstances such as slowing down during rain.
This reporter is on Twitter: @stephanieando
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