Social values behind the wheel

Abstract

Speeding can be conceptualised as a social dilemma shaped by road and traffic conditions, enforcement, and individual psychological differences. Yet most studies have overlooked how such differences condition drivers' responses to speed-management cues. We examined drivers' speeding propensity across urban scenarios in the West Midlands (WM), Athens, and Valencia, focusing on Social Value Orientation (SVO) and its moderating role. Random-parameters ordered probit models with heterogeneity in the means were used to capture unobserved heterogeneity and systematic variation linked to driver traits. Results show that road design, traffic density, and speed enforcement are associated with self-reported speeding, but these associations vary across contexts and drivers. SVO-related moderation was clearest in the WM, where stronger prosocial orientation weakened the links between behavioural-risk constructs and self-reported speeding and increased sensitivity to traffic and road-design conditions. In Athens, the pattern differed, with stronger prosocial orientation mainly strengthening the link between speeding tendencies and speeding propensity. In Valencia, SVO-related evidence was more selective and less pervasive. Age also moderated these relationships: in Athens, speed cameras were more strongly associated with lower stated speeding among older drivers, while in the WM and Athens the links between behavioural-risk constructs and stated speeding generally weakened with age. Overall, engineering and enforcement measures were not associated with stated speeding uniformly across drivers or study contexts. Speed-management strategies may therefore be more effective when physical design and enforcement are paired with communication that presents speed limits as credible, locally relevant, and clearly connected to the safety of other road users.