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Cloudy Days May Increase 'Road Rage' Behavior (2002)
While
cloudy days have been known to bring on an occasional bout of the blues
in some, new study findings suggest that sunless days may actually play
a role in "road rage"--the highway phenomenon of aggressive
driving marked by verbal or physical abuse.
In the new study, college students experienced more symptoms of
anxiety and irritability on a cloudy day compared with on a sunny day.
Additionally, students were more likely to report observing aggressive
driving, engaging in aggressive driving themselves, or having more
feelings of anger and hostility on cloudy days than on sunny days.
Lead investigator, Dr. Mark Wagner, an associate professor of
psychology at Wagner College in Staten Island, New York, presented the
findings last month at the annual meeting of the American Psychological
Society in New Orleans.
"I think that when a person is on the road, in a crowded urban
area in particular, many things can cause them to feel stress (because
there is the) constant threat from other drivers," Wagner
explained.
"Weather doesn't really cause (a person) to have road rage, but
it can be a 'last straw' when other things have already caused them to
feel irritable," he added.
People may want to pay more attention to keep their own emotions in
check, especially on cloudier days, and they should "watch
out" for road rage from other people when the weather isn't sunny,
Wagner said.
通常我们都知道阴霾的天气会让人们感到心情忧郁，但是最近一些研究表明这样的天气还会引起一种叫做"驾驶综合症"的行为，就是当人们在公路上驾驶汽车时一种争强好斗的挑衅行为，通常的症状是骂人或者打架。
在这项新的研究中，接受测试的大学生说，他们觉得同在晴天中相比，他们在阴天里更容易感到焦虑和急躁易怒。此外，他们还说，相比之下在阴天里，他们更容易见到别人出现或者亲历"驾驶综合症"，或者变得更加愤怒和充满敌意。
主持这项研究的是马克·瓦格纳博士是纽约斯塔滕岛瓦格纳学院心理学系的副教授。今年六月份他在于新奥尔良召开的美国心理学会年会上公布了这项研究结果。
瓦格纳解释说："我认为，当一个人在公路上，尤其是身处拥挤不堪的城市道路上的时候，有很多东西可以让人感到压抑。因为其他司机会对他们造成不断的威胁。"
他还说："天气并不是引起一个人'驾驶综合症'的真正原因，但是如果其他某种原因已经惹得他心烦意乱，那么阴沉的天气也就成了'导火索'。"
瓦格纳认为，人们在阴天里应该尤其多多注意控制自己的情绪。而且在这样的天气里，大家还要提防其他人的"驾驶综合症"，以免惹火上身。
