Page No.273-281
Seema Mehrotra, Paulomi M. Sudhir, Manoj K. Sharma, Neelima Chakraborty,
Rajeev Joseph Michael, Rajesh Kumar and Humera Banu,
NIMHANS, Bangalore
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Motorized two-wheeler riders are one among the most vulnerable Indian road users.
However, there is limited research on psychological factors that are likely to influence
riding behaviours of youth. The present paper focuses on exploring and documenting
emotional states associated with two-wheeler riding in urban Indian youth. The study
sampled 1,650 youth, aged between 17-30 years, from 30 educational institutes in
Bangalore and Delhi. A Riding Survey developed during the pilot phase was used for
data collection. Positive emotional states were commonly reported to be associated
with riding and a sense of freedom was one of the commonest factors that were linked
to the same, from the perspectives of the youth. Other than commuting, riding for fun
(54%) and riding for relaxation (30%), relief from boredom (22%) and getting away from
distress (17%) were endorsed as some of the reasons for taking out the two-wheeler..
Seeking a sense of power and control, seeking joy, seeking relief from anger or feeling
upset were reported by varying proportions of young riders as some of the reasons for
speeding. This exploratory survey highlights an urgent need for addressing the role
of emotions in preventive intervention programs that target young two-wheeler riders.
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