Message 1- Fear-Inducing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tywC-gRXbq0
Message 2 - Simple Message with Distractions
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kXVSpKogbQ
Message 3 - Two-sided
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLpcrr1cMb8
The first message gave me chills when I watched it. It definitely follows the steps of a fear-inducing message. The first step is showing the risk of a negative event happening. In the video the car slams head on into a tree, which could happen to anyone, with or without people in the car. You could also become seriously injured or even die because of this. Step two is demonstrated when the driver's spirit/soul ascends to heaven. He has died because he didn't wear a seat belt. Step three is demonstrated when the spirit/soul of the passenger in the front seat doesn't ascend to heaven. It almost did, but because he was wearing a seat belt, he lived. It ends by saying, "Heaven can wait" and "Buckle Up." This message correctly uses the fear-inducing technique by applying all four steps in the correct order. This message is also very vivid. Having the souls/spirits come out of the two men in the front of the car is very powerful and it makes you watch more intensely. Like I said before, I got chills when I watched this.
The second message is a PSA from the Connecticut Department of Transportation. If you saw this and didn't know it was for seat belts before hand, you would think it's a weird video of men's pants falling down. You only find out it's about seat belts in the last four seconds. It's distracting because you don't really know what's going on for the majority of the video.
Message three is a commercial showing a teenage boy and his younger sister going into town to get something for their mother. Their mother says to buckle up, which his sister does, but he doesn't. His sister reminds him of what their mother said but he replies that they aren't going far and that he has an airbag. While it is true that you are less likely to get into an accident when going a small distance and that airbags are meant to protect you, there is still a chance you could get into an accident no matter how far you go and you cannot rely on airbags alone. Seat belts are needed to be worn at all times while in the car even if you're just going down the street, you never know what could happen. Also, airbags are meant to work in conjunction with seat belts. The seat belt is the first line of defense in a crash while the airbag is a supplemental restraint system. First the seat belt, then the airbag. You should wear a seat belt not only for yourself but also for everyone around you.
Thursday, January 14, 2016
Messages for Seat Belt Use
Classical Conditioning Message 1 – Famous cartoon character
buckles up, so should you!
If you can't see from the above link, click the following YouTube link and skip to 7:37
Classical Conditioning Message 2 – Attractive girl wearing
seat belt
Classical Conditioning Message 3 – Save Yourself
Message 2 is also an example of classical conditioning. The woman wearing the seat belt is an attractive person and like the ad says, she's "In Fashion." This puts the image in people's heads that they will look like that when they wear a seat belt, so they'll be more inclined to do it.
Message 3 is an example of classical conditioning being intense. All of the words stand out because of their colors and background color. Also, as you can see, they "Y" in "YOURSELF" is the shape of a three point seat belt, which also makes the advertisement intense. I believe the color yellow was chosen for the last few words because on the road in real life, the solid yellow lines mean to always stay on your side of the road. So they made these words yellow because you should, "ALWAYS Wear Your Seat Belt."
Subliminal Message – Not wearing a seat belt can end your
life early
A subliminal message is supposed to be indirect. It is transmitted briefly, unidentified consciously, but identified unconsciously. We can assume things about this picture because we know that it's a message about wearing your seat belt. We can assume that if the seat belt was not worn, the hidden year would be when the person died. But, since they are wearing a seat belt, the year of their death is covered up, because seat belts save lives. This makes the viewer think about the consequences of not wearing a seat belt, which could be death.
Credible Communicator Message – Clint Bowyer talks about the
SAFE program
Credible Communicator Message 2 – Driver's Ed teacher
In the first credible communicator message, Clint Bowyer is definitely a credible source. He is a popular Nascar driver and knows the need for safety in a car. In this PSA, he talks about the SAFE program which reminds teens to put on their seat belts when driving. Because his life is driving a car around a track at 200 MPH, he knows the importance of being safe, which includes wearing a seat belt. Since he is going a lot faster than anyone when driving and he wears a seat belt, teens and other people will see him as a credible source.
In the second credible communicator message is a picture of a driver's ed teacher teaching a class of teens. Driver's ed teachers are very knowledgable about everything that has to do with driving, which includes safety. When teaching safety they talk about seat belts and the importance of wearing them. They are teaching our teens about everything driving so they are definitely a credible source.
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
History of Seat Belts
Although seat belts have been around since 1885 when Edward J. Claghorn was granted the first patent for a safety belt, the first automobile with a three-point safety belt appeared on August 13, 1959. The automobile was a Volvo PV544. Three-point seat belts are what we see in today's cars. There had been cars with two-point lap belts and some with versions of three-point safety belts, but they weren't very effective, especially at high speed.
 |
| Two-point belt |
 |
| Three-point seat belt |
The inventor of the three-point seat belt was engineer Nils Bohlin, who was looking for a better way of keeping people secure in a collision. He came up with the solution that combined a lap belt with a diagonal belt across the chest.
In 1966, Congress passed the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act which included that seat belts must be required for every passenger.
Being called one of the most significant inventions of the 20th century, the three-point seat belt remains the most widely used safety innovation in automotive history. Every car today is sold with three-point seat belts.
Being called one of the most significant inventions of the 20th century, the three-point seat belt remains the most widely used safety innovation in automotive history. Every car today is sold with three-point seat belts.
As the years went on laws were passed that required passengers and drivers to wear seat belts. As you will see later on, the laws nowadays for seat belt use varies from state to state.
The most common reasons why people don't wear seat belts are:
- They think it's not important, especially if going a small distance or when traffic is light
- They forget to wear them, especially when they are in a rush
- Wearing a seat belt is too uncomfortable, too tight or cuts across their neck
- Wearing a seat belt is not a "cool" thing to do
Social Engineering to Persuade Seat Belt Use
Social engineering is one way to try to solve a social problem. Through advertising, laws, education, and public service announcements, the idea is to try to change people’s beliefs and behaviors related to the problem.
There have been several different ways that society has told us to put on our seatbelt when we get in the car. The first, and most significant, are the laws that are passed in our states. The laws vary from state to state. All 50 states in the U.S. have fines for 1st offenses so this is definitely an incentive to wear your seat belt. You can see each state’s seat belt laws here:
There have been several different ways that society has told us to put on our seatbelt when we get in the car. The first, and most significant, are the laws that are passed in our states. The laws vary from state to state. All 50 states in the U.S. have fines for 1st offenses so this is definitely an incentive to wear your seat belt. You can see each state’s seat belt laws here:
As for campaigns, “Click It or Ticket” is the most successful seat belt enforcement campaign ever. It has increased the national seat belt usage rate across the country. There are commercials on the TV that generally run this ad. This lets people know that they can get a ticket for not wearing a seat belt, and since it’s such a catchy slogan, people will remember it. It will put fear in people's minds when they think about not wearing a seat belt. So, hopefully they will. The following are a few advertisements that also try to get people to wear their seat belts.
This last advertisement might be the most effective one. It shows what could happen if you don’t wear a seat belt and get into a crash. I think this would really hit home with people who drive because they don’t want to end up like the picture above.
A public service announcement that may also hit home with people is this commercial:
Even if you are a safe driver, not wearing your seat belt can have serious repercussions. The couple in the video looked very peaceful, driving slowly through a neighborhood looking for a house to buy, and then boom. This reiterates the need to wear a seat belt.
How Technology Has Increased and Decreased Seat Belt Use
A technological fix is another way to try to solve a social problem. Like its name suggests, it uses technology to try to fix the problem or the major negative consequences of the problem.
To start off, let’s look at how technology as decreased the use of seat belts. Since airbags became mandatory in all cars in 1998, people think that this is all they need to protect themselves if they get into a crash. But airbags are designed to work in conjunction with seat belts, not by themselves.
Now looking at how technology has increased the use of seat belts, one technological fix that recent cars have installed is: when you don’t click your seat belt the car makes a beeping noise. The only way to get the noise to stop is by actually buckling up. This noise is also pretty annoying so I don’t think most people would want to hear it for more than 5 seconds. People would then put on their seat belt.
A recent technological fix that I have seen is apart of the new 2016 Chevy Malibu. Since the majority of people who don’t wear seat belts are teenagers, General Motors created the “Teen Driver” system. This system mutes the radio when front seat passengers haven’t buckled up. Most people listen to the radio while they are driving or plug in their phone to listen to their music. Now they can’t unless they are buckled up. To see the full article, visit:
As cars become more technologically advanced, I believe that they will continue to be programmed like the above situations so people almost have to buckle up.
References
http://www.nhtsa.gov/PEAK
http://www.rospa.com/road-safety/advice/vehicles/in-car-safety-and-crashworthiness/seat-belts-history/
http://www.teendriversource.org/stats/support_teens/detail/59
http://exchange.aaa.com/safety/roadway-safety/safety-belts/#.VpaK7pMrJE4
http://www.ghsa.org/html/issues/occprotection/excuses.html
http://www.rospa.com/road-safety/advice/vehicles/in-car-safety-and-crashworthiness/seat-belts-history/
http://www.teendriversource.org/stats/support_teens/detail/59
http://exchange.aaa.com/safety/roadway-safety/safety-belts/#.VpaK7pMrJE4
http://www.ghsa.org/html/issues/occprotection/excuses.html
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