Self-evaluation of drivers' skill: a cross-cultural comparison

In a study conducted in Sweden and the United States, subjects judged their own driving skills in relation to other drivers. The results showed that a majority of subjects regarded themselves as more skillful than the average driver. This result was compared with that obtained from similar studies on the population of Polish amateur and professional drivers. The outcomes of this comparison confirmed the existence of an optimistic tendency to overestimate one's own driving skill. This tendency was observed in various groups of drivers differing in cultural background. Finally, the influence of this tendency upon risk estimates of traffic accidents and inefficiency of safety propaganda are discussed.