We have completed maintenance on DiscoverMagazine.com and action may be required on your account. Learn More

Terrorism Linked to Traffic Accidents

By Zach Zorich
Feb 6, 2005 6:00 AMNov 12, 2019 4:22 AM

Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news
 

The stress created by terrorism can affect an entire population, with potentially fatal consequences, sociologists say. Guy Stecklov of Hebrew University and Joshua Goldstein of Princeton University compared the pattern of Israeli automobile accidents over 18 months to the timing of suicide bombings there. They found a significant increase—69 percent—in traffic fatalities three days after attacks that claimed more than 10 lives. Those that took fewer lives correlated with smaller increases in the number of accidents.

 “These terror attacks have consequences that ripple through people’s lives,” Goldstein says. “We don’t think that traffic accidents are the main outcome; they happen to be the outcome we can measure.” Why it takes three days for the increase in traffic fatalities to occur remains a mystery. Goldstein theorizes that people avoid traveling immediately after a major attack but then return to their normal activities before they have recovered from their post-traumatic stress. Why the accidents occur is less of a mystery: Previous research has linked high stress levels to aggressive driving. Goldstein and Stecklov next plan to study the effect of terrorism-related stress on tobacco consumption and heart attacks.

1 free article left
Want More? Get unlimited access for as low as $1.99/month

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

1 free articleSubscribe
Discover Magazine Logo
Want more?

Keep reading for as low as $1.99!

Subscribe

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

More From Discover
Recommendations From Our Store
Shop Now
Stay Curious
Join
Our List

Sign up for our weekly science updates.

 
Subscribe
To The Magazine

Save up to 40% off the cover price when you subscribe to Discover magazine.

Copyright © 2024 Kalmbach Media Co.