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1 – 10 of over 1000John N. Ivan and Karthik C. Konduri
Purpose – This chapter gives an overview of methods for defining and analysing crash severity.Methodology – Commonly used methods for defining crash severity are surveyed and…
Abstract
Purpose – This chapter gives an overview of methods for defining and analysing crash severity.
Methodology – Commonly used methods for defining crash severity are surveyed and reviewed. Factors commonly found to be associated with crash severity are discussed. Approaches for formulating and estimating models for predicting crash severity are presented and critiqued. Two examples of crash severity modelling exercises are presented and findings are discussed. Suggestions are offered for future research in crash severity modelling.
Findings – Crash severity is usually defined according to the outcomes for the persons involved. The definition of severity levels used by law enforcement or crash investigation professionals is less detailed and consistent than what is used by medical professionals. Defining crash severity by vehicle damage can be more consistent, as vehicle response to crash forces is more consistent than that of humans. Factors associated with crash severity fall into three categories – human, vehicle/equipment and environmental/road – and can apply before, during or after the crash event. Crash severity can be modelled using ordered, nominal or several different types of mixed models designed to overcome limitations of the ordered and nominal approaches. Two mixed modelling examples demonstrate better prediction accuracy than ordered or nominal modelling.
Research Implications – Linkage of crash, roadway and healthcare data sets could create a more accurate picture of crash severity. Emerging statistical analysis methods could address remaining limitations of the current best methods for crash severity modelling.
Practical Implications – Medical definitions of injury severity require observation by trained medical professionals and access to private medical records, limiting their use in routine crash data collection. Crash severity is more sensitive to human and vehicle factors than environmental or road factors. Unfortunately, human and vehicle factor data are generally not available for aggregate forecasting.
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Changes in physiology associated with ageing mean increased concern for the safety of older drivers and the risk they may pose on other road users. The risk of older drivers is…
Abstract
Changes in physiology associated with ageing mean increased concern for the safety of older drivers and the risk they may pose on other road users. The risk of older drivers is distorted by their fragility; they are more likely to be injured or die in road collisions compared to a younger person. Older drivers are, overall, safe drivers who pose similar risks to other road users as middle-aged drivers, but who are at risk themselves because of their fragility. The fragility is greater in older females than older men; females over the age of 80 are nine times more likely to die from their injuries compared to 40–49-year old females, while men are at least five times more likely. Older drivers are overrepresented in collisions at junctions that have no formal traffic control and underrepresented in crashes that involve excess speed. While it is not possible to put traffic signals in every junction, it is suggested consideration be given to mini roundabouts or three-way stop-sign junctions (as found in United States and South Africa). There is no evidence that stringent testing for licence renewal has advantages in reducing older driver risk. Assessments at specialist centres, such as mobility assessment centres, are a more effective way to pick up drivers who are no longer safe to drive.
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Wars have important economic dimensions. They involve costs requiring resources that have alternative uses such as new hospitals, schools, and roads. Economists can contribute to…
Abstract
Wars have important economic dimensions. They involve costs requiring resources that have alternative uses such as new hospitals, schools, and roads. Economists can contribute to the understanding of wars by identifying their costs. Case studies make a valuable contribution by providing estimates of the costs of conflict. Much has been written about the costs to the USA of the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Similar studies for the UK have been lacking. This chapter provides UK estimates of the costs of both conflicts.
This chapter presents a theoretical framework of the industrial relations (IR) system in China’s coal mining industry, combining the roles of management organizations, workers…
Abstract
This chapter presents a theoretical framework of the industrial relations (IR) system in China’s coal mining industry, combining the roles of management organizations, workers, and trade unions, as well as government agencies. It is one of the first empirical attempts to investigate the relationship between human resource (HR) practices, labor relations, and occupational safety in China’s coal mining industry over the past 60 years, based on the secondary data on coal mining accidents and case studies of two state-owned coal mines in a northern city in Anhui Province, China. The fluctuating occupational safety has been affected by government regulations over different time spans, marked by key political agendas, and by coal mining firms taking concrete measures to respond to these regulations, while exhibiting differing safety performance in state-owned versus township-and-village-owned mines. The field studies compared a safety-oriented to a cost-control-oriented HR and labor relations system, and their influences on safety performance. Coal mining firms and practitioners are advised to shift the traditional personnel management paradigm to a modern HR management system. In addition, although workers are often blamed directly for accidents, it is suggested that workers’ participation and voice in various processes of decision-making and policy implementation, and trade unions’ active involvement in protecting workers from occupational hazards, be encouraged.
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Tucker S. McGrimmon and Lisa M. Dilks
The purpose is to theorize and empirically estimate the impact of the gendered nature of the offender-victim dyad and crime type on time to arrest.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose is to theorize and empirically estimate the impact of the gendered nature of the offender-victim dyad and crime type on time to arrest.
Methodology/Approach
Predictions regarding the impact of gendered offender-victim dyads and crime type on time to arrest are constructed by extending role congruity theory and tested using data from the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System across five crime types using dyadic-based event history methods.
Findings
The authors find strong empirical support that role expectations derived from the gender composition of offender-victim dyads and the masculinity of the crime type affect time to clearance.
Originality/Value
This research is the first to theorize and empirically test the relative impact of role congruency and the relational nature of the offender-victim dyad in the adjudication process. Furthermore, the research shows that the construction of “normal crime” can be enhanced by applying a gendered and relational approach, based on social psychological theory, which is predictive of crime clearance.
Research limitations/Implications
Future research is required to validate the results for crimes where law enforcement has less discretion and are feminine typed.
Social Implications
The results imply that by accounting for the expectations generated by gender roles when applied to offender-victim dyads a casual mechanism is established that better organizes previously inconsistent results with respect to the impact of gender on time to clearance. Thus, the authors' utilization of role congruity theory of gender provides a more consistent explanation for inequalities in time to clearance that may be fruitful for evaluating other steps in the adjudication process.
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Purpose – This chapter aims to advise the public as well as municipal, state and national agencies about how pedestrian safety can be improved through changes in our built…
Abstract
Purpose – This chapter aims to advise the public as well as municipal, state and national agencies about how pedestrian safety can be improved through changes in our built environment. Higher safety can lead to more walking and thereby a more sustainable society.
Methodology – The chapter is based on a review of literature, including a review of published papers and field studies by the author himself.
Findings – To reach ‘acceptable’ safety levels, all arterials and collector roads – at least segments with more than 50 pedestrians a day – should have sidewalks. The sidewalks should be separated from the roadway by a curb if speeds are low and by a barrier or wide separation strip in high-speed areas; that is, where speeds are higher than 50 km/h. Local roads also need sidewalks unless traffic volumes and speeds are very low. The major safety issue for pedestrians is, however, where they cross streets. Elderly pedestrians and pedestrians in a great hurry or under the influence of intoxicants in particular need streets to be narrow and have low speeds for them to be able to cross safely. Marking crosswalks or even signalising them will have only marginal safety effects at best. Posting them for low speed is also not enough unless we have photo speed-enforcement ensuring that everyone drives slowly. Rather, using narrow cross-sections or speed cushions at the approaches ensuring that 90-percentile speeds are no more than 30 km/h at crossing points is key to safety. In between crossing points a speed of 50 km/h is acceptable with pedestrians on adjacent sidewalks.
Social implications – We as a society need to encourage walking as a mode of transportation since walking promotes better health and a cleaner environment; that is, a more sustainable society. However, it has to be safe to walk or people will prefer to drive to their destinations. Also, distances between destination points have to be kept reasonably short and the environment, where people walk needs to be interesting and aesthetically somewhat pleasing to encourage walking.
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