{"id":30913,"date":"2022-04-19T20:33:25","date_gmt":"2022-04-19T20:33:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/?p=30913"},"modified":"2022-04-19T20:33:25","modified_gmt":"2022-04-19T20:33:25","slug":"road-rage-how-to-calm-or-protect-yourself","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/2022\/04\/19\/road-rage-how-to-calm-or-protect-yourself\/","title":{"rendered":"Road rage: How to calm or protect yourself"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Last year was the worst on record for road rage shootings in the United States, according to data released<\/a> by Everytown for Gun Safety, which found that more than 500 people were shot and wounded or killed in more than 700 incidents. The monthly average of 44 people killed or wounded by gunfire on the roads was double the 2019 average.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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There are probably two main factors driving the increase in shootings on the road, said Sarah Burd-Sharps, research director for Everytown. \u201cOne is that covid-19 has brought all kinds of new stressors into our lives, and that\u2019s playing out in terms of health behaviors that are quite frightening,\u201d she said. The other, she added, is a spike in gun sales<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Experts say the rise in road-rage-related shootings is a quantifiable slice of an alarming problem. While it is difficult to determine the frequency of other kinds of road rage incidents \u2014 such as making obscene gestures, throwing objects or sideswiping or forcing a fellow driver off the street \u2014 anecdotal reports suggest that belligerent behavior on the road has generally increased during the pandemic.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s like the Wild Wild West out there, and it\u2019s just unacceptable,\u201d said Pam Shadel Fischer, senior director of external engagement with the Governors Highway Safety Association<\/a>. The group manages the National Law Enforcement Liaison Program and frequently hears from officers about \u201cangry drivers, road rage aggressiveness, people going incredibly high rates of speed and people being really unpleasant to each other,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is very concerning.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Retired police captain Greg Fremin<\/a>, an adjunct criminal justice professor at Sam Houston State University in Texas, agrees. \u201cUnfortunately, there\u2019s been a serious increase,\u201d he said. In the case of shootings, he said, \u201cit\u2019s a very hard crime to solve because it happens very quickly, unless there are witnesses that saw the license plate or vehicle. People say, \u2018Oh, we heard the shot, but we didn\u2019t know where it came from.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Below, experts help us understand the reasons people erupt into road rage and offer strategies for keeping yourself and others calm, and for responding to angry drivers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Why we experience road rage<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n

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Humans have evolved to have a fight-or-flight response \u2014 a physical reaction to stressful events, said Ziv Cohen<\/a>, a New York City-based forensic psychiatrist and clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College. \u201cWe have a brain that\u2019s acutely wired for things that might provoke us into anger or fear or survival,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd we have very, very well-preserved neural mechanisms that are millions of years old to activate us very rapidly into a state of action \u2014 to either flee or to attack.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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That\u2019s why, when we feel provoked on the road \u2014 say, someone cuts in front of us or has been tailgating us for 10 minutes \u2014 we sometimes respond in extreme ways that might seem irrational, Cohen said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A research article<\/a> published in the journal Social and Personality Psychology Compass in February 2021 about how to regulate road rage outlined the factors that go into generating it. In some cases, a person\u2019s threshold for getting angry might simply be lower than other people\u2019s, said co-author James Gross<\/a>, a professor of psychology at Stanford University, where he directs the Stanford Psychophysiology Laboratory. \u201cThese are people who just have an angry temperament \u2014 you might say they\u2019re very prone to getting angry, and it doesn\u2019t take much to make them angry.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The degree to which people experience a range of negative affective states, including anxiety and anger, is partially genetic, Gross added. Still, not all people with irritable temperaments will display road rage, he said. And others, who don\u2019t have any predisposition to anger, will end up in a stressful situation that provokes them so much, they\u2019re suddenly raging.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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During the pandemic, road rage probably worsened for a variety of reasons, Cohen theorized. People have experienced tremendous stress and economic hardship, and there\u2019s been an increase in depression, anxiety and substance abuse. Combine all that, and it\u2019s easy to see why some people have \u201cless of an inner buffer for dealing with things that provoke them\u201d on the road, he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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If you\u2019re prone to road rage, Gross and other experts suggest these steps to control your intense emotions:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Don\u2019t drive if you\u2019re worked up. <\/b>The first step to preventing road rage, Cohen said, is to stay home if you\u2019re not emotionally equipped to drive safely. \u201cDon\u2019t get behind the wheel if you\u2019re very upset or irritable or hung over,\u201d he said. \u201cYou don\u2019t know what\u2019s going to happen during the course of your drive \u2014 it could be uneventful, but there could be things that provoke you that you\u2019re going to be less able to cope with.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Maintain comfort. <\/b>If your car is too hot, or you\u2019re listening to an upsetting podcast, you might be more likely to get agitated. Gross suggested making yourself as calm and comfortable as possible: Keep the car at a temperature you like and listen to soothing music, perhaps. It can also be helpful to practice deep breathing, especially if you feel yourself starting to get annoyed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Give other drivers the benefit of the doubt. <\/b>Reframe how you\u2019re thinking about the situation, Gross advised: Tell yourself that maybe the black Durango that cut you off was rushing to the hospital or late for a make-or-break job interview. \u201cThinking differently, or reappraisal, is a big one,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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It can sometimes be difficult to extend such grace to other drivers because the stakes are so high \u2014 and \u201cmistakes can mean death,\u201d said Ryan Martin<\/a>, a psychology professor at the University of Wisconsin at Green Bay who studies anger. That\u2019s why it\u2019s so easy, when you see someone being careless, to become \u201clivid with rage.\u201d But, as he points out, we can probably all remember a time when we didn\u2019t look carefully when we changed lanes and accidentally cut someone off. He implores drivers to let these incidents roll the same way they hope others would do for them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Have a plan in place.<\/b> Road rage often demonstrates a lack of impulse control, said Fran Walfish<\/a>, a psychotherapist based in Beverly Hills, Calif. One strategy is to have a carefully thought-out strategy for responding to someone who, say, cuts you off or honks at you repeatedly. \u201cKnow your trigger points,\u201d she said. For example, decide in advance that if someone wrongs you, you\u2019re going to \u201ccount to 10 and not put the pedal to the metal.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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If it happens repeatedly, seek professional help.<\/b> \u201cRoad rage is a reflection of someone\u2019s mental health overall,\u201d Cohen said. If you\u2019re having extreme reactions that you didn\u2019t used to have, or if they\u2019re putting you in dangerous situations, consider talking to a therapist. \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t just normalize it and say, \u2018This is how I am on the road,\u2019\u201d Cohen said. \u201cIt\u2019s definitely an indication that something is going on.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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What to do if you\u2019re the passenger<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n

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If you\u2019re driving with someone who flies into a fit of road rage, don\u2019t criticize them or yell at them to relax or calm down \u2014 those tactics will inevitably backfire. Instead, strive to stay calm and speak with a soft voice. \u201cWe can influence people a lot more by getting them to model our behavior than by actually telling them what to do,\u201d Martin said. He suggests starting with something like: \u201cHey, I know you\u2019re frustrated. Let\u2019s take a couple deep breaths.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Then, Martin recommends framing the conversation around how you\u2019re feeling. You might say, \u201cHey, I\u2019m feeling really scared right now.\u201d That approach will \u201clet them know in a passive way that what they\u2019re doing is leading you to feel a bit anxious,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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You could also offer to take over driving and give your companion a chance to collect herself while riding as a passenger, Cohen suggested.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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How to respond if you\u2019re being targeted<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n

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If you\u2019re being pursued by a rageful driver, resist engaging in any way. \u201cYou don\u2019t want to respond to their aggression with your own aggression,\u201d Fischer said. \u201cAbsolutely don\u2019t make eye contact, and refrain from gesturing. If you show your frustration, it\u2019s going to escalate even more.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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If you\u2019re on a multilane road, move out of the angry driver\u2019s way. You could turn off the road to get away, said Fremin, the retired Houston police captain, but you shouldn\u2019t pull over. \u201cIf you pull over and stop, they\u2019re going to pull over and stop,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s what they\u2019re wanting you to do.\u201d (If you do end up in a scenario where someone approaches your car, lock the doors, lay on the horn and call 911. Don\u2019t get out of the car, Fischer said.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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You should also call 911 if you\u2019re being followed. \u201cTell the dispatcher you have an aggressive road rage driver that\u2019s following you, and the dispatcher is going to start quickly relaying that information\u201d to an officer, Fremin said. Don\u2019t hesitate to involve the authorities, he added. \u201cIt\u2019s just a very dangerous issue we have happening right now,\u201d and it\u2019s best not to take any chances.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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