Presentation
In addition to imagery, we know it matters who is
presenting the information¹. Familiar examples from
our work include using a teacher or other familiar adult,
using young people themselves, using famous faces
from sport or tv, using people who have been involved
in or affected by road crashes, and using members of
the emergency services.
Young people - Though they are not road safety
‘experts’, they are experts in understanding their
demographic group, and it can empower them to give
them some involvement in designing an approach to
be used with their peers². Stories that feature young
people’s experience may appear more relatable than
those of older people.
Teachers - Teachers or familiar adults will know the
audience better than an outside expert, but they are
not necessarily ‘expert’ in the area, and must be given
the guidance needed to present the right messages
and say the right things 3 . They may be seen as the
‘same old’, usual information presenters, reducing the
impact of the information and the likelihood that the
message will be seen as any more important than other
information presented by those people.
Keep it contemporary: The MND performance
(see p79 for the full details) is a live action
intervention and therefore the fashions and the
language can be kept up to date relatively easily.
The 2017 tour saw the actors using contemporary
smartphones, referencing popular messaging
Apps, and even partaking in some ‘dabbing’
during a car journey (whilst listening to current
music). Because the performance is revisited
and refreshed before each tour, these cultural
reference points can be (and indeed must be!)
adapted to reflect the kinds of behaviours and
trends that will mean something to each cohort.
¹ Savigar, L (2018). Preventing mobile phone use while driving: appreciating the equivocal nature of identity, safety and legality in an uncertain world
(Unpublished doctoral thesis). Keele University, Staffordshire.
² Youth for Road Safety (2016). Unleashing the Power of Youth: Annual Report 2016. Available from: http://www.youthforroadsafety.org/uploads/tekstblok/
yours_annual_report_2016_final_singlepages_compressed.pdf
3
Assailly, J.P. (2017) ‘Road Safety Education: What works?’ Patient Education and Counselling, S24-S29
34