Assessing operant conditioning preferences on instructional for road safety education

Road crashes represent a significant global issue, particularly in Malaysia, affecting drivers, motorcyclists, pedestrians, and daily commuters. Road crashes are significantly influenced by subjective risks, such as human error, that are external or environmental in nature. These incidents are significantly influenced by human error, which includes driving behaviours such as reckless driving. The costs of medical care are a significant financial burden on the victims and their families, in addition to the suffering that road crashes inflict. Despite these efforts, the incidence of road crashes remains high. Therefore, the objective of this study is to assess preferences for operant conditioning instructional methods in road safety education (RSE), including campaigns, health education, social media, and virtual reality (VR). The study focused on 204 respondents in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, investigating road users’ behaviors and safety knowledge. Quantitative methods were employed for data collection and numerical analysis using closed-ended questionnaires. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 29 was used for this study. These findings indicate a positive association between health education and VR, with preferences for instructional methods for road safety education. The data analysis shows that respondents agreed VR can help them in road safety education, as it helps people by allowing them to learn and replicate real-life scenarios, for example, by using video games. In addition, health education also shows a significant relationship with operant conditioning as it enhances people's knowledge regarding the importance of health and road safety. However, these results showed a negative relationship between road users' preferences for instructional methods for road safety education between campaigns and social media. This study suggest that these instructional methods could effectively reduce road crashes and promote safer behaviors among road users.