The personal trends and styles that people add to their cars are what make each and every vehicle unique. Sure, I see hundreds of the silver Toyota corollas, which is the car I own, but how many of them have a dog bone lodged in the back window (like mine)? These little additions and quirks are what make driving such an enjoyable experience. The wonderful thing about personal style is that it can be incorporated into a car in a number of different ways. The owner may choose to cover the interior with a flame print, or line the undercarriage of the car with neon lights. Some may even decide to express their right to freedom of speech through personalized license plates and bumper stickers, but can this expression become dangerous to other drivers?

Despite the fact that these expressions of style are distracting to other drivers, a new study has found that people who have bumper stickers plastered on their cars, may not be the most forgiving when it comes to road rage. Researchers at Colorado State University concluded that personalization items including license plates, bumper stickers, and even as much as items on the dashboard are better predictors for road rage than things such as vehicle value, and condition. The study observed the aggression of 500 drivers in the form of honking, tailgating, and blocking traffic.

Researchers believe that it all comes down to the concept of protecting one’s territory on the road. Many of these cars are owned by drivers who feel as though their personal interpretations function as territory markers, and when threatened, drivers who had at least one marker in or on their car were 15% more likely to retaliate in a negative way. This aggressive driving behavior can inadvertently lead to a number of problems, including accidents, traffic jams and even death.

Although this is only one scientific study, it does bring up an interesting issue on whether or not the expression of freedom of speech on one’s car is dangerous to the other travelers on the road. So the next time you head out on your summer road trip, and get stuck behind a passenger van boasting a sticker that displays “proud parent of an honor roll kid,” you may want to think twice before cutting them off.

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Tags: General Auto, travel //