Browsing by Subject "Policy publicity"
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Item The role of legal and moral norms to regulate the behavior of texting while driving(Elsevier, 2018-01) Kim, Hyang-Sook; Towson University. Department of Mass CommunicationDespite a nationwide lawful effort to regulate texting-while-driving behavior, little change has been reported. This study assessed the effect of current legal enforcement on attitudinal and behavioral responses toward texting while driving in conjunction with potential influences of two types of perceived norms—legal and moral. An online survey was conducted with 313 college students recruited from three states where the history of a banning law of texting while driving varied (more than 3 years, less than 1 year, and none). The students self-reported perceived legal norm, perceived moral norm, perceived risk of texting while driving, frequency of texting while driving, attitude toward texting while driving, and intention of texting while driving. General linear model analyses revealed that the mere presence of legal enforcement showed a negative relationship with frequency of behavior only for the state with the banning law in effect more than 3 years. While the perceived legal norm showed inconsistent relationships with outcome variables, the perceived moral norm appeared most promising to discourage texting while driving among young drivers. A banning law for texting-while-driving behavior not only backfired on the actual behavior in a short-term effect, but also required a long-term exposure of the law to change the actual behavior among college students. On the other hand, cultivation of a moral norm to regulate the behavior of texting while driving is particularly encouraged in that the stable nature of this psychological variable can play a role to suppress possible reactance evoked by an external force. Policy makers are encouraged to harness their approach to regulate young drivers’ texting while driving with the strategy that appeals to the drivers’ moral beliefs rather than simply forcing them to comply with the law.Item The use of legal and social sanctions as a norming influence on texting while driving(Taylor & Francis, 2020-09-10) Kim, Hyang-Sook; Wang, Weirui; Towson University. Department of Mass CommunicationLaws banning texting while driving in the United States have not been highly successful in curbing the target behaviour. The aim of the current study was to explore the influence of normative campaign messages on texting while driving among college students from three states where the length of a ban on the behaviour differed. An online experiment using a 3 (State: more than 3 years vs. less than 1 year vs. no ban) × 2 (Message type: legal sanction vs. social sanction) × 2 (Time: pre- vs. post-message measures) mixed factorial design (N = 115) revealed that one-time exposure to the message containing a legal sanction changed perceived legal consequences regardless of state of residency. Furthermore, the legal sanction message was more effective than the social sanction message not only in fostering an unfavourable attitude toward texting while driving but also in weakening behavioural intention in the state where texting while driving had not been legally banned. The social sanction, on the other hand, was more effective than the legal sanction in the state where the law had been in effect less than 1 year, while its effect was the opposite direction in the state with no legal prohibition. Findings suggest that interventions conveying social norms against the behaviour might create immediate reactance to the intervention message unless it reinforces the ban. Instead, using a public campaign to reinforce the legal consequences of texting while driving is a promising way to minimize or prevent this risky behaviour.