Qualitative study of contextual factors of driving offenses on the roads

Road accident in Iran is about five times more than that of industrialized countries and Iran has the fourth place in the world. Researches confirm the ambition of a greater share of human factors in accidents compared to other factors. Since violation of the law has negative consequences for offenders this study explores the reasons and grounds for which drivers engage to violation of driving laws on the roads despite awareness of the consequences of such behaviors. The study applied a qualitative method using grounded theory approach. Three highway police stations selected based on the density of accidents criteria. A total of 61 participants who have offended driving law at least during the recent quarter were interviewed. Moreover, three group discussions were held with participants who captured by the police for offending driving law. The study findings show that 7 underling factors of driving law violation are: cultural and training poverty of drivers, unfavorable conditions physical and psychological of driver, favorable financial conditions of the driver, shortcomings of existing driving laws, inappropriate treatments of police officers, unsuitable quantity and quality of roads, despite the negative and competitive mentality of driver. The study suggests that contribution of human factors apart from contribution of other factors cannot be checked.