Responses of Women and Men to Traffic Safety Messages: A Qualitative Report
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1994-02-01
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Edition:Focus group report
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Abstract:More information about receptivity to traffic safety communications is needed to develop effective media campaigns for women. This project sought to obtain such information through (1) a review of literature on gender differences in response to traffic safety and health-related messages and (2) interviews with groups of men and women to evaluate their responses to selected traffic safety public service announcements (PSAs). S.W. Morris & Co. conducted a review of the relevant research and talked with a number of experts on this subject. The review revealed that few data are available to characterize women who are involved in crashes or to describe their responses to advertising. However, the background review yielded information on gender-based issues that should prove useful in the design of public information and education programs for women. Eight focus groups involving a total of 28 men and 32 women, aged 25-59, were conducted in 1992. Participants discussed their driving habits and attitudes and how these had changed in recent years, as well as traffic violations committed by other drivers and by themselves. They also gave detailed reactions to seven televised PSAs, which dealt with three topics (drinking and driving, speed compliance, and safety belt usage) by conveying various motivational themes (enforcement risks, physical injury, fatality risk, normative appeal, financial cost, and personal responsibility). Although there were several similarities between the responses of men and women, more often than not their, reactions to driving situations and safety advertising were different. As compared with participants, some female participants tended to drive more aggressively; they often noted the stress of driving with children in the car; older women mentioned the problem of reduced night vision; female participants generally responded more favorably to emotional appeals in advertising, were less accepting of humor, were less concerned about production values, objected less to exhortative or authoritarian appeals, were more likely to perceive information as relevant to their family or friends, and were more sensitive to the potential for negative stereotyping in portrayals of women as poor drivers. The report includes a number of specific recommendations regarding future qualitative and quantitative studies. /Abstract from report summary page/
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