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Fast Feelings

Fast Feelings . An experimental study of cycle helmets’ effect on cycling pace and emotional reactions dr. Aslak Fyhri Senior researcher Department of Safety and the Environment . § ?. Lack of effects in legislation. Case-control studies show positive effect of helmet

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Fast Feelings

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  1. Fast Feelings An experimental study of cycle helmets’ effect on cycling pace and emotional reactions dr. Aslak Fyhri Senior researcher Department of Safety and the Environment

  2. § ?

  3. Lack of effects in legislation • Case-control studies show positive effect of helmet • Legislation for adults: • Australia • Canada (British Colombia) • New Zealand • USA • Mixed evidence • Some injury reduction, but more for other injuries • Reduced cycling • Why do the laws not work?

  4. Risk compensation or population shift? • Risk compensation • Helmets make people feel more safe • cycle faster • Higher cycling speed → more accidents • Population shift • Helmet laws →cycling a hassle • Non-committed cyclists disappear • Eager, high-risk cyclists remain • Higher accident risk

  5. Risk compensation involves risk perception (?)

  6. Measuring emotions • Asking is difficult • Psychophysiologicalmeasures as indications of mental load (stress) • Differ in immediacy • Galvanic skin response, most common • but impractical in field studies (traffic)

  7. Heart rate variability • Less dependent on physical load • Easy to measure

  8. Previous study (Phillips, Fyhri and Sagberg 2011) • Differing effects depending on helmet habits • Only routine helmet users cycle faster with helmet • No differences in emotions (heart rate variability) according to helmet use • Not enough control with physical activity

  9. Procedure • Two sites, downhill sloped • Makrellbekken (0.9 km) • Kongsveien (1.4 km) • “Cycle for 100 meters, then stop pedalling” • One hand on the steering! • With and without helmet (random assign) • Measures • Speed • Heart rate variability

  10. Participants(N=27) • College students • Age 16-46 (mean 22.1) • 4 male/23 female • Nine regular bicyclists (> 1 t/week) • 15 routine helmet users (> rarely use)

  11. Results, speed • Accustomeduserscycle faster with a helmet, unaccustomedusers do not

  12. Results, heart rate variability • Accustomedusersare less afraidwith a helmet, unaccustomedusersareunchanged

  13. Potential long term effects, risk compensation theory

  14. Potential long term effects, population shift theory

  15. Conclusion • The helmet had an effect • on cycling speed • and on “emotions” • But only for accustomed helmet users • “Inverse” risk compensation? • yes, but most likely a transitory situation Fyhri and Phillips (2012) Emotionalreactions to cyclehelmetuse. AccidentAnalysis and Preventionin press

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