Files and links (1)
Published VersionCC BY-NC V4.0, Open Access
Journal article
The missing piece in deterring phone use while driving: Police perspectives after legislative and penalty changes
Journal of Safety Research, Vol.96, pp.268-276
2026
Abstract
Objective: Engagement in illegal phone use while driving continues to increase. To obtain a more in depth understanding of the deterrent impact of the current legal countermeasures for this behavior, this study conducted a qualitative investigation from those on the frontline of enforcement: police officers. Method: A total of 26 police officers from Queensland, Australia, completed interviews on how they view the deterrent impact of the current phone use while driving legislation, penalties, and their enforcement, using classical deterrence theory as a framework. Police officers were interviewed during and after changes to the phone use while driving legislation and penalty in their jurisdiction. A reflexive thematic analysis was conducted to analyze the data and themes were created based on the constructs within classical deterrence theory: certainty of apprehension, severity of punishment, and swiftness of punishment. Results: The findings demonstrate the factors that contribute to both strengthening and weakening the legal deterrent effect for phone use while driving from a police perspective and have important theoretical and practical implications. For example, it is suggested that phone use while driving legislation that does not differentiate the types of phone behavior can make enforcement of this offense easier, yet a higher penalty may result in drivers concealing their phones more.
Details
- Title
- The missing piece in deterring phone use while driving: Police perspectives after legislative and penalty changes
- Authors
- Verity Truelove (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Road Safety Research CollaborationLaura Mills - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Road Safety Research CollaborationOscar Oviedo-Trespalacios - Delft University of Technology
- Publication details
- Journal of Safety Research, Vol.96, pp.268-276
- Publisher
- Elsevier Ltd
- Date published
- 2026
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.jsr.2026.01.007
- ISSN
- 1879-1247; 0022-4375
- Copyright note
- © 2026 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync/4.0/).
- Grant note
- This work was supported by the Motor Accident Insurance Commission (MAIC)/University of the Sunshine Coast Road Safety Research Collaboration Grant.
- Organisation Unit
- Road Safety Research Collaboration; School of Law and Society
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 991206278802621
- Output Type
- Journal article
Metrics
1 Record Views