Re: [CR] [OT] Now Psychology Of Driving

(Example: Racing:Roger de Vlaeminck)

From: "Charlie Young" <youngc@netreach.net>
To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Subject: Re: [CR] [OT] Now Psychology Of Driving
Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2004 11:24:59 -0500

This is due to a phenomenom termed "search image" in the study of predator/prey relationships. You are looking for something specific and excluding non-relevant visual inputs in order to be able to more effectively find your target. Automobile drivers "fear" other cars and trucks and that is what they are attempting to see amidst many other visual elements. Were we to equip all bicycles with weapons, over time, automobile drivers would "evolve" toward seeing us as potential threats and thus modify their search image or be taken out of the gene (and car) pool.

For a familiar example, when you are pawing through your junk drawer at home, you are looking for something specific and you will unconsciously filter out the other 16,372 items that you don't happen to need at the moment. Note that this may not apply to your bike parts bin where you will get easily distracted by the jewel-like elegance of the Huret Jubilee rear derailleur or some other piece of gear that you picked up.

In another attempt to bring this back on topic: Given the tendency for people to steer towards that which they are looking at directly, an exquisitely painted bike with finely crafted lugs may put you at significantly higher risk!

Charlie "send those dangerous 57-59 cm frames to me" Young Honeybrook, PA

Raoul "penned":
> But in reality , it made no difference that the
> driver was looking right at the other vehicle , before ,
> and during , the collision . The automobile driver did
> NOT see the other vehicle . In order to "see"
> something , the image has to actually be PERCEIVED or
> REGISTERED by the brain .
>
> Basically , in the minds of most drivers , bicycles
> and motorbikes do NOT exist . Therefore , they do
> NOT "see" them . And that is what my Psychology
> professor testified to , in court .