Developing a self-reporting method to measure pedestrian behaviors at all ages

Granié, Marie-Axelle; Pannetier, Marjorie; Guého, Ludivine · 2012 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.1016/j.aap.2012.07.009

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Summary

This study addresses the lack of comprehensive tools for measuring pedestrian injury risk behaviors across all age groups. While pedestrian fatalities remain a significant road safety challenge, existing observational methods fail to capture everyday behaviors in varied contexts, and previous self-reporting questionnaires often focused narrowly on adolescents or failed to distinguish between intentional violations and unintentional errors. The authors aimed to develop and validate the Pedestrian Behavior Scale (PBS), a self-reporting instrument designed to differentiate between transgressions, lapses, aggressive behaviors, and positive behaviors, thereby enabling more targeted preventive actions. The researchers constructed an initial 47-item PBS based on the conceptual framework of the Driver Behavior Questionnaire and existing pedestrian scales. The items covered offences (intentional rule deviations), errors (unintentional dangerous decisions), lapses (inattention), aggressive behaviors, and positive social interactions. Data were collected via an anonymous online survey from 343 participants aged 15 to 78 in France. Factor analyses were performed to determine the scale’s structure, followed by ANOVAs and t-tests to examine the effects of demographic variables (age, gender) and mobility factors (driving license ownership, walking frequency) on behavior scores. Principal component analysis revealed a robust four-factor structure accounting for nearly 40% of the variance. Factor 1, “transgression,” combined both offences and errors, suggesting pedestrians do not psychologically distinguish between legal violations and careless decisions. Factor 2 comprised “lapses” related to inattention. Factors 3 and 4 represented “aggressive” and “positive” behaviors, respectively. A refined 20-item version of the scale demonstrated good internal reliability and maintained the four-factor structure across different age and gender groups. Results indicated that men and individuals under 35 reported significantly more transgressions and offences than women and those over 45. Conversely, women reported more positive behaviors. Mobility analysis showed that non-drivers committed more errors and lapses, while frequent walkers reported higher rates of transgressions and offences. Additionally, individuals who walked for pleasure exhibited more lapses and positive behaviors, whereas those forced to walk committed more errors. The study concludes that the PBS is a valid, reliable tool for assessing pedestrian behaviors across diverse populations. The finding that errors and offences load onto the same factor suggests that pedestrians may view legal rules and safety norms similarly, challenging distinctions made in driver behavior research. This instrument allows researchers to analyze psychological mechanisms behind risky behaviors and adapt safety interventions to specific vulnerable groups, such as young males prone to transgressions or non-drivers prone to errors.

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Topics

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• pedestrian behavior perception
• pedal misapplication
• human error taxonomy
• dbq psychometrics

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• Empirical Findings: observational prevalence