“It Won’t Happen To Me” – The Dangers of Optimism Bias

Whether
a person is new to driving, or is an experienced driver of 20 years,
drivers can succumb to risky behaviors and habits by thinking “it
won’t happen to me” while they drive. Whether it comes to
emergency situations such as black ice or hydroplaning, or even the
precautions such as keeping distance on the highway, people’s
unrealistic thought that they won’t have a car accident undermines
their regard for safety behavior and can lead to car crashes and
death. 

To
reduce deaths from car accidents, we need to inform people about
their optimism bias. Optimism bias is when a person believes that
they themselves are less likely to experience a negative event such
as a car accident, including fatal car crashes (2020). New, young,
and inexperienced drivers especially suffer from optimism bias since
they are likely to not have had a negative driving experience. As a
result, this can lead to people taking more risk, without taking
preemptive measures to stay safe when on the road. I personally had
optimism bias that led to my first car accident ever. As a Floridian
all my life, Michigan winter driving was all new to me and I thought
“it won’t happen to me,” as I was safe in my 4×4 Jeep headed to
the grocery store. As I approached the store going 5 MPH below the
recommended speed limit, as I turned left at a steep turn, I slid on
black ice during the turn such that my right front wheel hit the tall
concrete curb with enough impact that my car jumped over the curb and
bent my front center axle. I was fine, but I had to make an emergency
payment of $500 for the damages. Now, I know I should make
single-digit MPH turns, but it took a negative experience to reduce
my optimism bias and have that important hindsight.

 

Driving
education helps, but paradoxically education can actually increase a
person’s optimism bias rather than reduce it (2020). If educating
the biased person worsens the problem, then the solution must be
based on what has worked to reduce a person’s optimism bias in the
past. A study from the University of Illinois at Chicago showed that
the best way to take on the mentality “it won’t happen to me”
is to surround the people at risk with people who are close to them
and have experienced a negative event like car accidents (Perloff &
Fetzer 1986). Whether it is family or a close friend, the study shows
that the people close to them helped reduce the person’s optimism
bias and thus their idea that they are not going to ever have a car
accident. I believe a step towards reducing deaths is pairing driving
education with the opportunity for new or experienced drivers to
reflect on a close one such as a friend or coworker who has had a
horrible car accident as a step to reduce deaths on the roads in
order to increase drivers’ safety on the road. 

Citations:

Perloff,
Linda S., and Barbara K. Fetzer. “Self–Other Judgments and
Perceived Vulnerability to Victimization.” Journal of Personality
and Social Psychology, vol. 50, no. 3, 1986, pp. 502–510.,
doi:10.1037/0022-3514.50.3.502.

“Optimism
Bias.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 20 Mar. 2020,
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optimism_bias.