Developmental Aspects of Children’s Behavior and Safety While Cycling
Author
Summary, in English
Objective To examine children's competence while cycling, as demonstrated in mistakes in performance and failure to comply with safety rules. Methods Children in three age groups (8, 10, and 12 years) participated in a realistic yet simulated traffic environment. Results The boys' cycling speed increased steadily with age, while that of the girls increased from 8 to 10 but decreased at age 12. Most children had adequate motor control by age 10, and the youngest compensated for their less developed skills by cycling slowly and braking early at junctions. Serious mistakes, often related to the children's age and gender, consisted of the children failing to stop at signals or stopping too late, especially at short stopping range. Conclusions There are considerable individual differences in children's cycling competence that are related to biological factors, such as age and gender, and psychological factors, such as rule compliance and choice of cycling speed.
Department/s
Publishing year
2004
Language
English
Pages
369-377
Publication/Series
Journal of Pediatric Psychology
Volume
29
Issue
5
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Topic
- Psychology
Keywords
- risk taking
- safety rules
- attention
- cycling behavior
- children
- traffic environment
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 1465-735X