A social advertising strategy to
reduce speeding
Martine Stead and Douglas Eadie
1. Introduction
Toolsspeed' was a five-year campaign to reduce speeding in Scotland. Although it focused solely on the promotional P, it was informed to some extent by social marketing principles. The campaign was guided by the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), a model that uses psychological determinants to explain and predict behaviour (Ajzen, 1988).
2. Problem definition
Speeding is a major road safety concern in Scotland and most offences occur within built-up 30 m.p.h. speed limit areas. Being young, male, in a higher social class and income bracket, driving a powerful car, and doing higher mileage are characteristics associated with speeding (Manstead, 1991; Stradling, 1999).
Psychological factors related to speeding also include:
• Social norms. Compared to drink-driving, speeding attracts less stigm.a and may be seen as a normative and majority behaviour (Strad ling, 1999).
• Beliefs. Speeders, in comparison to non-speeders, rate adverse speeding consequences as less likely to occur and less undesirable (Stradling, 1999).
• Emotional factors. Speeders are more likely to associate instrumental benefits (getting to a destination quicker) and emotional benefits (the pleasure in driving fast) with speeding (Stradling, 1999).
• Exaggerated feelings of control and confidence. Many speeders have an illusory sense of control over their driving (Simon and Corbett, 1991).
The TPB model has accounted for significa.nt variances in speeding intentions (Manstead, 1991; Parker et al., 1992, 1995; Stradling and Parker, 1996) and claims that behaviour is established by behaviour intention, determined by:
(a) Attitude to the behaviour (AB), predicted by instrumental belief' (beliefs about behaviour consequences, such as affective beliefs about the positive
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or negative emotions experienced while performing the behaviour) and outcome evaluations (evaluations of the desirability of those consequences).
(b) Subjective norms (SN), predicted by normative beliefs (if significant 'referents', such as family members, friends or partners, will approve of the behaviour) and motivation to comply (degree of motivation to meet with referent's approval).
(c) Perceived behavioural control (PBC), predicted by control beliefs (one's ability to perform or refrain from a particular behaviour in various circumstances) and control frequency (how often one is in those circumstances).
3. Competitive analysis
Many urban speeders, although aware of speeding dangers, continue to speed with the belief that speeding saves time, they are in control of their car and it is easy to stop quickly. External pressures can also encourage drivers to speed (e.g. running behind schedule, being stressed, dealing with impatient drivers, listening to music, etc.).
4. Stakeholder analysis
Limited attention was given to stakeholders. The main group was the Scottish Executive (Government), who requested logo placement on all Foolsspeed messaging. Formative consumer research results discouraged this and a Foolsspeed campaign logo was used instead. Police and private sector also had a minor role in promoting and supporting the initiative.
Stakeholder needs and benefits are shown in Table CS3.1.
. ,
Stakeholder needs andBenefits • • • : ' - • - - •
Stakeholder Needs
Government • Public support shortly
after devolution.
Police • Reduce speeding
instances.
Benefits from reducing speeding
• Fewer road casualties.
• Fewer road casualties.
Potential role in Foolsspeed
• Foolsspeed campaign funding.
• Collaborate to raise awareness of key road safety messages and support for police service initiatives.
• Expose drivers to Foolsspeed through products or business materials.
Private sector • Consumer trust through • Corporate
responsible business responsibility. practices.
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5. Aims and objectives
Foolsspeed's aim was to reduce inappropriate speed (within the legal limit but inappropriate for the conditions) and excessive speed (over the legal limit) on urban Scotland's roads, and was the first UK attempt to develop a large-scale driving behaviour intervention informed by the TPB.
6. Formulation of strategy
A social advertising strategy was devised to meet each objective (Table CS3.2).
Social advertising strategy for each objective
Offer benefits to voluntarily engage speeders in responsible driving habits
Social advertising offering
Targeting and segmentation: the general driving population in Scotland were the overall target group; men 24-44 years in social classes ABC1 (professional, white-collar and clerical workers) were a core target group within this.
Branding: Foolsspeed brand and identity. Play on words (fools speed/full speed)
Price: the 'Mirror' TV advert addressed temporal costs (saving time); the 'Doppelganger' TV advert focused on emotional costs (pleasure in driving fast).
Place: distribution of communication and educational materials through various channels urban roads, Glasgow cinemas, homes and businesses in Scotland.
Promotion: advertising (six 10-second campaign launch TV adverts, four TPB TV adverts); outdoor media (bus backs, petrol pump advertising, parking ticket advertising, vehicle decals); PR (adverts and articles featured in the Herald); unpaid publicity (use of Foolsspeed by the Association of Chief Police Officers Scotland Road Policing Strategy, road safety units, Scottish Councils); corporate sponsorship (display of logo on some Tesco, Safeway and Transco vehicles, Foolsspeed message on Robert Wiseman's Dairies milk cartons); website; newsletters.
Exchange: TP8 TV adverts promoted the intangible benefits of driving responsibly-time saving, more safe, more socially acceptable and more pleasurable.
Objective
Understand and effectively reach drivers with a speeding tendency
Create a unique and meaningful brand to challenge drivers to think about speeding
Address costs of adopting responsible driving habits for speeders
Distribute materials in channels and settings suitable to drivers in Scotland
Design memorable communication materials that influence behaviour intentions, attitudes, subjective norms and PBC for urban speeding
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The four TV adverts were linked to the TPB as follows:
• The 1999 'Mirror' advert — attitudes. The first advert addresses the TPB attitudes component. Beliefs about inappropriate speeding — that speeding saves time, that a speeder is fully in control of the car and that a speeder is able to stop quickly if necessary — are challenged by demonstrating that the legal speed (30 m.p.h.) is too fast in certain circumstances. The advertisement also sought to challenge the belief 'I'm a better driver than most'. It features a male in his thirties driving in an urban residential environment. The driver's conscience or alter ego appears in the rear-view mirror and points out the foolishness of urban speeding by noting that a car from which the driver previously raced away has caught up with him at the traffic lights. As the driver nears a school, the conscience argues about the appropriateness of his speed, to which the driver retorts that 'he is a better driver than. most' (implying that he can handle speed safely). The driver's attention is distracted by a young woman walking along the pavement with a small child, and when he looks back at the road he is shocked to realize the car in front has stopped at a school crossing. The driver comes to a noisy halt and the conscience shakes his head in the mirror. The strap-line reads 'Take a good look at yourself when you're driving'.
• The 2000 'Friends and Family' advert — subjective norms. The second advert addresses the TPB subjective norms component. It sought to highlight the possible mismatch between a driver's own view of his or her behaviour and how it is seen by passengers, and to illustrate to drivers the possible concern, irritation and anxiety that significant others may feel about their driving. The driver is a male in his thirties, while the significant others are a female spouse/partner and a male friend /work colleague. A baby is also present in the advert, in a child seat in the back of the car. The advertisement begins with the female partner, at home, describing how her partner becomes 'a different person, totally unrecognizable'. The family are then shown in the car, with the driver speeding and his partner protesting as the speed of the car jolts the baby's neck. She says she wishes her partner could see things through her eyes. A male friend/colleague of the driver then addresses the camera, also expressing his disapproval of his friend's speeding. The two friends are shown in the car, with the driver again speeding. The friend spills juice down his sweater when the driver accelerates to race another car away from the lights and expresses annoyance. The advertisement closes by showing the driver alone in the cat to the voice-over 'Put yourself in the passenger seat. If you don't, others won't.'
• The 2001 'Simon Says' advert — PBC. The third advertisement addresses PBC — drivers' perceptions of how easy or difficult it is to increase their control over speeding. The advertisement seeks to challenge drivers with the sentiment 'you're responsible for the way you drive' by
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depicting typical internal and external pressures that encourage drivers to speed, and demonstrating that it is possible and desirable to withstand such pressures. Three different drivers and scenarios are depicted, illustrating the pressure of being in a flow of traffic going at 40 m.p.h. in a 30 m.p.h. limit, the pressure of being late for work, and the more direct pressure of an impatient driver (a 'white-van man') behind. In the latter scenario, the driver nearly hits a cyclist as a result of being distracted and pressurized by the white-van driver. The ad closes with the strap-line 'Be your own man'.
• 2004/05 Doppelganger' advert — attitudes (affective beliefs). The final advert focuses on the positive emotional benefits of calmer driving. In keeping with the realistic approach to everyday driving, the advert contains no accidents or crashes. Instead, it focuses on a man and his doppelganger's journey to work. We see the attitudes and behaviours of the 'two' drivers as they undertake the journey to the office. One character drives calmly and without incident, arriving at his work in a relaxed state, finding a car parking space and getting a cup of coffee. The second character is impatient, takes unnecessary chances (although he is not involved in any incident as such) and ends up being 'lectured' by the police at the side of the road. Consequently, he arrives at the office stressed and frustrated, and unable to find a parking space, while his doppelganger observes him through the window, calmly sipping on his coffee.
Campaign resources are shown in Figures CS3.1 and CS3.2.
249
Figure CS3.1 Foolsspeed logo. Reproduced with permission from the Scottish Road Safety Campaign.
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Foolsspeed newsletter. Reproduced with permission from the Scottish Road Safety Campaign.
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A social advertising strategy to reduce speeding
7. Research and evaluation
The social advertising plan was guided by three research stages:
• A literature review, comprising a review of previous TPB driving violation studies to identify salient beliefs in forming attitude, subjective norms and PBC.
• Formative consumer research, comprising eight male and female focus groups to explore speeding beliefs and norms, and gauge feelings about road safety advertising.
• Pre-test consumer research, comprising six focus groups each year for three years to examine reactions to each TV advert concept.
The evaluation comprised a four-year longitudinal survey of 17- to 54-year-old drivers with a baseline and three-yearly follow-up surveys (Stead et al., 2005).
8. Outcomes
Foolsspeed was fundamentally a social advertising campaign and could have incorporated a more structured social marketing framework; nevertheless, the campaign was effective in changing speeding attitudes. Evaluation results suggest that road safety campaigns underpinned in a psychological model can be successful without using fear-arousing approaches (Stead et al., 2005).
The main findings were:
• TPB and speeding variance. TPB predicted between 47% and 53% of the variance in intentions to speed, and 33-40% of the variance in reported speeding (Stead et al., 2005).
• Communication outcomes. Spontaneous and prompted awareness was high for campaign elements: between a fifth and a third of respondents spontaneously mentioned seeing Foolsspeed TV adverts and high awareness levels were found for other media. The 'Mirror' advert received the highest prompted recall level (Stead et al., 2005). All adverts were rated as easy to understand and did not 'talk down to' participants. They were also successful in generating identification and empathy at spontaneous and prompted levels (Stead et al., 2005).
• Attitude. The attitude 'Mirror' advert had a moderately favourable effect on beliefs and attitudes. Negative and positive affective beliefs became significantly more anti-speeding, associated with the 'Mirror' advert (Stead et al., 2005).
• Subjective norms or PBC. Subjective norms and PBC were stable (Stead et al., 2005).
• Behaviour intentions and reported behaviour. Behaviour intentions were stable. Although not associated with campaign awareness, reported
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speeding frequency appeared to decrease significantly between the baseline and third survey, as well as the baseline and fourth survey.
References
Ajzen I. (1988). Attitudes, Personality and Behaviour. Milton Keynes: Open University Press.
Manstead A.S.R. (1991). Social psychological aspects of driver behaviour. Invited paper presented at the meeting New Insights into Driver Behaviour, organized by the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety, London. Manchester: University of Manchester.
Parker D., Manstead A.S.R., Stradling S.G., Reason J.T. and Baxter J.S. (1992). Intention to commit driving violations: an application of the theory of planned behaviour. Journal of Applied Psychology, 77: 94-101.
Parker D., Manstead A.S.R. and Stradling S.C. (1995). The role of personal norm in intentions to violate. British Journal of Social Psychology, 34: 127-137.
Simon F. and Corbett C. (1991). A small roadside study of drivers caught breaking speed limits. Paper given at the Seminar on Behavioural Research in Road Safety, Manchester University.
Stead M., Tagg S., MacKintosh A.M. and Eaclie D. (2005). Development and evaluation of a mass media Theory of Planned Behaviour intervention to reduce speeding. Health Education Research, 20: 36-50.
Stradling S.G. (1999). Changing driver attitude and behaviour. Presented at DETR Speed Review Seminar, London.
Stradling S.G. and Parker D. (1996). Extending the Theory of Planned Behaviour: the role of personal norm, instrumental beliefs and affective beliefs in predicting driving violations. Presented at International Conference on Traffic and Transport Psychology, Valencia.
Lessons learned
1. Although not a social marketing campaign, Foolsspeed demonstrated how social advertising grounded in psychological theory can he used to effectively change speeding attitudes without using the traditional fear approaches that are commonly present in road safety campaigns.
2. Foolsspeed is also a good example of the distinction between the two components of 'promotion' - the media channels and the media message - and how these can impact change. The Foolsspeed strategy leveraged both components - for instance, by incorporating a variety of media channels to promote the campaign (advertising, PR, unpaid
publicity, website and newsletters), as well as the TPB to guide the
development of the media message shown in the TV adverts.
3. Because Foolsspeed was fundamentally a social advertising campaign versus a social marketing one, limited attention was paid to key stakeholders. If a social marketing approach had been taken, a more in-depth analysis of the key stakeholder grotips could have played a fundamental role in the campaign strategy.
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Case study questions
1. Q: Describe how Foolsspeed used targeting and segmenting to understand and reach drivers with a known tendency to speed.
A: The campaign was designed to appeal to two target groups: the general driving population in Scotland as well as men 24 44 years of age in social classes ABCI (professional, white-collar and clerical workers).
2. Q: Name and describe the three determinants of behaviour intention encompassed in the TPB model.
A: Attitude to the behaviour (AB), subjective norms (SN) and perceived behavioural control (PBC). AB is predicted by instrumental beliefs (beliefs about behaviour consequences) and outcome evaluations (evaluations of the desirability of those consequences). SN is predicted by normative beliefs (if significant 'referents' will approve of the behaviour) and motivation to comply (degree of motivation to meet with referent's approval). PBC is predicted by control beliefs (one's ability to perform or refrain from a particular behaviour in various circumstances) and control frequency (how often one is in those circumstances).
3. Q: Choose one determinant of behaviour intention from the TPB model and describe how it was addressed in the Foolsspeed campaign using one of the TV adverts as an example.
A: For example, the 'Friends and Family' advert addressed the SN component of the TPB by highlighting the difference between how the driver viewed his driving behaviour versus how significant others did. The advert demonstrated the mismatch between his own view in contrast with how a female spouse/partner and a male friend/ work colleague felt about his driving behaviour.