The relationship between self-reported ability emotional intelligence and risky driving behaviour: Consequences for accident and traffic ticket rate
DOI: 10.1016/j.aap.2022.106760
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Summary
This study investigates the relationship between self-reported ability emotional intelligence (EI) and risky driving behavior, aiming to clarify how EI influences the likelihood of engaging in dangerous driving and its subsequent consequences, such as accidents and traffic tickets. Motivated by the critical role emotions play in risk decision-making and the mixed findings in previous literature, the researchers sought to determine if higher EI, particularly the ability to regulate emotions, reduces risky driving tendencies. The study also examined whether risky driving mediates the relationship between EI and negative driving outcomes. The research utilized a community sample of 555 Spanish drivers (mean age 39.34, 49.19% women) recruited via snowball sampling. Participants completed online assessments using the Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale (WLEIS) to measure self-reported ability EI across four dimensions: appraisal of one’s own emotions, appraisal of others’ emotions, use of emotion, and regulation of emotion. Risky driving behavior was assessed using the risky driving subscale of the Dula Dangerous Driving Index. Data on sociodemographic variables (gender, age, annual mileage, driving experience) and self-reported lifetime accidents and traffic tickets were also collected. Statistical analyses included Pearson correlations, multiple linear regressions controlling for sociodemographic factors, and mediation models using bias-corrected bootstrapping to test indirect effects. Results indicated that higher total EI scores were negatively associated with risky driving behavior. Specifically, the ability to regulate emotions (ROE) was the strongest EI predictor of reduced risky driving. Risky driving was positively correlated with both the number of accidents and traffic tickets. Mediation analyses revealed that EI indirectly reduced accidents and tickets through its effect on risky driving. In the final mediation models, the regulation of emotions predicted fewer accidents via both direct and indirect pathways. For traffic tickets, the appraisal of others’ emotions had a significant direct negative effect, while the regulation of emotions exerted a significant indirect negative effect via risky driving. Sociodemographic controls, such as gender and age, also showed significant associations with driving outcomes, but the EI relationships remained significant after adjustment. The findings suggest that emotional intelligence, particularly emotion regulation, serves as a protective factor against risky driving and its negative consequences. This supports the theoretical view that managing emotional states during driving can mitigate reckless behaviors. The authors propose practical implications for road safety, suggesting that intervention programs focused on improving emotional competencies, such as RULER or INTEMO, could be integrated into driver education and training. These programs might be more effective than traditional approaches that merely inform drivers of risks. The study acknowledges limitations, including its correlational design and reliance on self-report measures, recommending future experimental research and the use of objective driving assessments to confirm causal links.
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| Stage | Outcome | Tool | Model | Prompt | Attempts | Completed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| discover | success | Crossref | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-18 |
| archive | success | openalex | — | — | 5 | 2026-06-25 |
| extract | success | cached | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-26 |
| clean | success | clean | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-20 |
| chunk | success | chunk | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-20 |
| embed | success | embed | Qwen/Qwen3-Embedding-8B | — | 1 | 2026-06-20 |
| enrich | success | openalex | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-20 |
| promote | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-18 |
| summarize | success | llm | qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant | summ-v5 | 1 | 2026-06-26 |
| tag | success | vector_similarity | — | — | 6 | 2026-06-20 |
| verify | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-26 |
Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-26; verification: verified.
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