Tag: safety culture

New Publication: Safe Interactions Between Vehicles and Bicyclists

Posted on September 9th, 2020
Truck passing a bicyclist on a rural highway

The Journal of Safety Research has published an article that examines the influence of traffic safety culture on a driver’s behavior when interacting with bicyclists on the roadway.

“Traffic safety culture and prosocial driver behavior for safer vehicle-bicyclist interactions” is based on a research collaboration between the Center for Health and Safety Culture (CHSC) and the Small Urban and Rural Livability Center (SURLC) at WTI.  Authors include CHSC researchers Nic Ward, Kari Finley and Jay Otto of CHSC, and David Kack, Rebecca Gleason, and Taylor Lonsdale of SURLC.

Bicyclist safety is a growing concern as more adults use this form of transportation for recreation, exercise, and mobility. Most bicyclist fatalities result from a crash with a vehicle, and the behaviors of the driver are often responsible for the crash.  The researchers conducted a survey study of Montana and North Dakota residents and found that prosocial driver behavior was most common and appeared to be intentional. They also found that this intention was increased by positive attitudes, normative perceptions, and perceived control. The findings can be used to develop strategies to increase prosocial intentions and driver behavior, thereby increasing bicyclist safety.

CITATION: Ward, N. J., Finley, K., Otto, J., Kack, D., Gleason, R., & Lonsdale, T. (2020). Traffic safety culture and prosocial driver behavior for safer vehicle-bicyclist interactions. Journal of Safety Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsr.2020.07.003

Newspaper Lauds Parenting Website

Posted on July 23rd, 2019

Logo for ParentingMontana.org shows outline of state with the website address and tagline "Tools for your child's success"ParentingMontana.org continues to receive great reviews. In a recent editorial, Karen Sullivan of the Montana Standard called the website “one of the best resources on parenting I’ve run across, and Montana parents are lucky to have it.”

ParentingMontana.org features practical tools for parents with kids ranging from age five to age nineteen, covering challenging topics such as anger, bullying, chores, homework, peer pressure, and underage drinking. The Center for Health and Safety Culture (CHSC) developed the project in cooperation with the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS).

The website also offers access to a repository of videos, radio and print materials, as well as contact information for assistance resources in Montana, such as prevention specialists, treatment services, and a crisis text line.  In her editorial, Sullivan concludes that ParentingMontana.org “is an incredible free resource that might just make the parenting journey a little easier.”

CHSC Announces Summer Webinars

Posted on June 28th, 2019

The Center for Health and Safety Culture will host webinars in July and August, based on two of their research and community outreach projects:

Exploring Law Enforcement Attitudes and Beliefs About Traffic Safety Enforcement

July 8, 2019 from 1–2pm MDT

This webinar will summarize the results of a recent project to better understand how the culture within law enforcement agencies impacts engagement in traffic safety enforcement. The project is sponsored by the Traffic Safety Culture Pooled Fund Program hosted by the Montana Department of Transportation.

Reducing Problem Gambling in Oregon

Aug 27, 2019 from 10am – 11am MDT

This webinar will showcase a partnership between the Center for Health and Safety Culture and the Oregon Health Authority that focused on reducing problem gambling throughout Oregon. Join this webinar to hear how this partnership formed, view the tools that were developed, and learn how they’re being used today to reduce problem gambling across the state.

To learn more about and register for both webinars, visit the CHSC webinar page.

2019 Positive Culture Framework Training Program – Registration Now Open

Posted on March 12th, 2019

Banner announcing Positive Culture Framework Training to be held September 24 to 26, 2019 in Nashville, TN and showing photo of downtown Nashville

This fall, the Center for Health and Safety Culture (CHSC) will host a training workshop on the fundamentals of Positive Culture Framework.  Registration is now open for the 2 ½ day event, which will be held September 24-26 in Nashville, Tennessee.

The training is designed for anyone working to improve health and safety, such as traffic safety professionals, substance misuse professionals, prevention specialists, violence prevention advocates, coalition members, government personnel, and law enforcement officers. Through this training, attendees will:

  • Learn how culture influences behavior;
  • Develop and refine skills in three critical areas: leadership, communication, and the integration of effective strategies; and
  • Gain specific next steps for transforming culture to improve health and safety.

The agenda and registration information for this training is available on the CHSC website.

New Publication: The role of social capital in traffic safety citizenship

Posted on February 19th, 2019

Traffic safety citizenship is an emerging approach to reduce serious injuries and fatalities on our roadways. The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Civic and Political Studies recently published “The Role of Social Capital in Traffic Safety Citizenship” by Kari Finley, Jay Otto, and Nic Ward of the Center for Health and Safety Culture. The journal article describes their study to develop a model to identify beliefs and values associated with intention to engage in traffic safety citizenship behaviors with strangers and to explore the role of an individual’s perception of social capital in this model. This study focused on two safety citizenship behaviors: intervening as a driver to ask a passenger to wear a seat belt and intervening as a passenger to ask a driver to stop reading or typing on a cell phone while driving.

 

Citation: Finley, Kari, Jay Otto, and Nicholas Ward. 2018. “The Role of Social Capital in Traffic Safety Citizenship.” The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Civic and Political Studies 13 (2): 29-41. doi:10.18848/2327-0071/CGP/v13i02/29-41.