| This study examined the relation among types of beliefs about accidents (descriptive, self, normative, goal, and causal), and described the relation between fatalistic beliefs about accidents and driving while intoxicated behavior.; A sample of 204 licensed drivers was selected from two subpopulations: 108 persons convicted of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and 96 persons not convicted of driving a vehicle while intoxicated.; The results of this study were based on a single survey questionnaire administered in Group Dynamic Traffic Safety School sessions and administered in college undergraduate classes during the fall of 1984. Beliefs about accidents were not orthogonal constructs. However, 4 types of beliefs were significantly related and explained a sizable portion of observed variation.; Fatalistic beliefs about accidents were nonsignificantly related to conviction of operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Ancillary measures including risk taking, accident anxiety, cognitive failures, external locus of control, driver role, and near-miss accidents were related to fatalistic beliefs about accidents. |
