Safety Culture from an Interdisciplinary Perspective: Conceptualizing a Hierarchical Feedback‐based Transportation Framework

Given the colossal issue of traffic accidents causing serious injuries, fatalities, and traffic congestion in the United States, the current article introduces a feedback safety model that utilizes and combines disparate data sources and allows for model‐based action to alleviate the problems. This feedback model will serve two purposes: (1) it will provide an overarching view of safety culture that incorporates fundamentally distinct data sources; and (2) it will aid in the development of targeted messages and control actions at various levels, especially to the highest‐risk public segments, which can highlight the risks of unsafe driving as well as increase perceived importance for traffic safety. In order to develop this model, the article begins with the issue of distracted driving in the main study. The basic premise of the argument is that drivers who are distracted are more likely to be unsafe (i.e., the behavior is normally augmentative) and that safety is a culture, not a concept. In essence, curbing distracted driving should lower vehicle‐based accidental deaths. We will then argue for an overarching safety culture framework to lower distracted driving from a holistic perspective through gathering multiple data sources and developing targeted communication mechanisms.