Influence of safety belt usage on perception of the risk of an accident.

Does the use of a safety belt increase or decrease the perception of the risk of an accident? Young and older male drivers were asked to drive an urban route and rate their perceptions of the risk of an accident. On the first driving trip all subjects were unbelted, while on the second driving trip half of the subjects wore a safety belt while half did not. Results indicated that young male drivers decrease their perception of the risk of an accident as they become familiar with a driving route if they are NOT wearing a safety belt. Young male drivers asked to wear a safety belt sustained their perception of the risk of an accident as they became familiar with the test route. Older drivers' perception of the risk of an accident was not affected by familiarity or safety belt usage.