Abstract
Recent improvements in the economy of the U.S. Territory of American Samoa have made possible the purchase of many automobiles and have created a dramatic increase in the number of drivers. During the six years from 1970 to 1976, automobile registration on the small, mountainous island increased 96% from 2,130 to 4,182 vehicles. All of these vehicles are restricted to sharing approximately 82 miles of roads. Unfortunately, the police traffic enforcement, highway engineering, driver education, and driver licensing practices have had a difficult time staying abreast of the needs of the growing driver population. The rate of traffic citations issued and the rate of traffic deaths are about four times higher than the U.S. average. The purpose of this study was to enhance the driver licensing and driver education programs through an analysis and revision of the American Samoa Driver's Guide. This 16-page guide, which was the only source of safe driver information for most drivers in the territory, was found to be deficient in terms of providing locally relevant safe driving information. A revision was created for the local driving population through a design involving: (1) a comparison with a sample of six U.S. driver handbooks, (2) a review of the 6,755 traffic citations issued in the territory during 1976, (3) a rating of critical topics by an advisory panel of six local traffic safety authorities, and (4) a trial use of the revision by more than 100 adult and high school driver education students. The material included in the revised handbook was selected by virtue of being used by at least half of the U.S. sample handbooks and by being listed as instructional objectives in the HumRRO Driver Education Task Analysis. The review of traffic citations was not considered useful, since it did not appear to demonstrate a direct relationship to safe driver knowledge deficiency, but rather an indication of enforcement emphasis and driver attitudes. Guidance from a local advisory panel and conferences with driver education instructors using the new revision insured that the validated material was presented in a logical order, properly illustrated, in a simple format, and at an appropriate reading level for the target population...
Vinson, Gerald Edward (1979). An analysis and revision of the driver's guide for the government of American Samoa. Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -152880.