Almost half of all drivers express their anger by honking or yelling
one in twenty admitted to having tried to run another driver off the road
A Driving Anger is for those curious about what it is about driving that causes so many people to get so extremely angry—so filled with rage—so often.
Why is it that, when we are on the road, we experience such A Driving Anger?
the author, Dr. Anne O’Dwyer explores psychology of road rage in her most recent publication, A Driving Anger.
Do you find your own anger getting out of control while driving?
Are you worried about the anger and aggression of a family member or friend when they're driving?
Do you have a teenager or young adult who is just starting to drive?
Do you wonder what to do when you encounter an angry driver on the road?
Do you want to learn more?
Why anger while driving can so readily escalate into rage.
How to assess your own tendency to anger-while-driving.
What to do if another driver becomes enraged.
De-escalate road-rage as a passenger.
What driving anger reveals about other “stranger rages”.
Thanks for being interested in my book, A Driving Anger. This book is the culmination of many, many years of reading, researching, and conversations I’ve had over the years with hundreds (probably closer to thousands) of people about their experiences with road rage.
See my Book page for details on this project and my research.
Simon’s Rock at Bard College
I’ve been teaching psychology at Simon’s Rock at Bard College in western Massachusetts and upstate New York for over 25 years.
The courses I teach also span a wide range of subjects in psychology. I have taught Introduction to Psychology every semester for over 25 years (more than 50 times!), and I still find it one of my favorite classes! I love introducing students to psychology and sharing with them some of the best (and sadly, worst) moments in the field’s history. Please see my Teaching page for more information on the span of courses I teach at Simon’s Rock and elsewhere.
While teaching, advising, and mentoring have been my primary foci these past many years, I continue to find time to read about my two main areas of interest: interpersonal conflict and the nature of the self. Also, road rage—A Driving Anger—is connected to these interests, as conflicts between drivers are somewhat unusual instances of interpersonal conflict (how often are we confronted with our interdependence with total strangers?). And how we perceive other drivers and feel when enraged on the road are connected, I believe, with how we see ourselves.
Rage at real injustices and malicious and oppressive actions is understandable and appropriate. In contrast, harming or threatening to harm another person because they erred while driving—or even carelessly and thoughtlessly broke a driving rule—is not a reasonable or appropriate response.