- Posted by Admin on May 17, 2010
A recent Wall Street Journal article asked this rather blunt
question in its title: “Do Girls Speed
More than Boys?” The article pointed out
something that every auto insurer in the country knows: the difference in premium charges between
youthful boys and girls has narrowed over the last 5 years. That’s a roundabout way of saying that girls
have cost insurers more in recent years relative to boys than they used to –
i.e., they have more and/or costlier accidents than they used to.
The article cites stats provided by a countrywide survey
conducted by TRU Research for the Allstate Foundation in May 2009, based on
1,063 online interviews with teens. The
survey was a follow-up to one conducted in 2005 by the Allstate
Foundation. Since the survey was
self-reported, it also could say something about the relative honesty of boys
and girls when it comes to their driving behavior. Nonetheless, I think we all know the
difference between their driving experience isn’t what it used to be.
Certain of the stats were surprising, to the point of
raising the issue of forthrightness. 48%
of the girl respondents said they are likely to drive more than 10 mph over the
speed limit vs. 36% of the boys. The
percentage of girls describing their driving as “aggressive” was 16%, up from
9% in 2005. During the same period the
percentage of self-described boy drivers dropped from 20% to 13%, below the
percentage of aggressive girls. Right!
Others of the stats definitely were not surprising. 51% of the girls said they are likely to use
a cell phone to talk, text or email while driving, vs. 38% of boys. In a reflection of their adult counterparts
when queried about Congress (“I hate Congress, but MY Representative/Senator
isn’t the problem”), kids of both genders see the problems as being somewhere
other than in the mirror. 65% say they
are confident in their own driving skills, but 77% admit to having felt unsafe
with a different teen’s driving.
The latter stat likely has something to do with a point raised
in the 2005 report that was studied at some length around that time. The study involved brain development, and
found that the portion of the brain that correlates cause-and-effect
relationships between events and their consequences does not fully develop
until the mid-20s (except in politicians, where I’m sure a similar study would
find this portion of the brain to be completely missing – sorry, that was too
obvious to pass up). Therefore, kids
tend to see the thrill in risky behavior behind the wheel without considering
the dangers associated with that behavior.
As a passenger they are more likely to feel the danger since they are
not the ones in control.
Getting back to the subject of the article, I can’t resist
relaying an incident I experienced a few years ago while running out for
lunch. I was in the left lane in one of
our city’s major streets, alongside a teenage girl talking and having a good
time with her friends in the car. As we
approached a red light at another major thoroughfare, while I was applying my
brakes I couldn’t help but notice her still talking and having a good time with
her friends as she rapidly closed the distance between her and the last car at
the red light. Finally, either she
looked up or one of her friends suggested she do so, slammed on the brakes,
narrowly missing the stopped car, and backed up to put a little distance
between the two cars. As she resumed
talking and having a good time with her friends (now slightly in front of me),
I noticed that the back-up lights still were illuminated. Sure enough, when the light turned green and
she hit the gas, back she went before another screech brought her to a halt
just in front of the car behind her, which apparently (and fortunately) had
noticed the back-up lights and kept its distance. Finally, now back in drive, she continued
talking and having a good time with her friends as she proceeded in the correct
direction.
“Oblivious” was the word that immediately came to mind. However, a more thoughtful response probably
would have observed that many kids are social animals, likely more so among
girls. In this case, and no doubt in
many more like it, the driver’s social inclinations dominated her
still-developing sense of responsibility.
In an admittedly non-scientific “study”, I certainly have observed this
type of oblivious behavior behind the wheel in girls more so than in boys, who
(from personal experience) are more likely to be goofing off as opposed to
being unaware of what they are doing. My
unscientific observation has been unscientifically confirmed by similar
unscientific studies of my acquaintances (the nice thing about non-scientific
studies is they don’t have to be politically correct).
Seriously, the article points out some observations about
the results of the study relative to the direction society as a whole has
taken. More specifically, women are more
and more competitive in the role they now fill than in the past. Whether talking about careers, academics,
athletics, or whatever, former barriers and role distinctions have eroded,
along with the more passive nature associated with former views. In other words, narrowing gender differences
in driving behavior are simply mirroring what is going on everywhere else. That view has been put forth by psychologists
and other professionals who work with teenage girls, no doubt in a more
scientific format than my study. Young
female driving behavior and an increase in general assertiveness go
hand-in-glove.
The WSJ article cites trends from the U.S. Department of Transportation
showing that death rates for teenagers from traffic accidents have dropped by
54% from 1975 until 2008. That, of
course, parallels traffic fatalities in general. However, the rate of decline for girls during
this period was less than that of boys by a wide margin – 38% vs. 59%. From that it doesn’t take a lot of analysis
to deduce that the traffic death rate for girls and boys has narrowed
considerably over the last 35 years.
We see things changing constantly in this business, and
insurance rates have to change constantly to reflect current
circumstances. After all, insurers
protect people and things against unanticipated events, and all three (people,
things and events) are in a constant state of flux. Societal changes such as what we see
reflected in youthful female rates are a constant in our business.
So is she sweet or Junior?
All of the above, plus many more options – she just ain’t who she used
to be. Who says insurance is boring?