Road Rage as a Psychiatric Disorder

Paper Summary:

Road rage is a term that has been introduced into the English language not only in common speech, but also in legal, psychiatric and scientific circles. This paper discusses road rage and its definition. It explores why the concept has only recently emerged into the literature and questions whether it previously existed. It also discusses whether road rage can be regarded as a valid psychiatric syndrome by separating three schools of thought from the sea of varied opinions and to conclude it comments on its significance in a legal context.

From the Paper:

"This first school believes that road rage is not a valid psychiatric syndrome and should not be defined under its own mental illness category. They attribute some of the cause of road rage towards America's gun policy. More and more Americans are carrying guns in their cars with one study showing a firearm was used in 37% of aggressive driving incidents involving weapons. This means encounters that may in the past have only resulted in angry gestures or even a fist fight, are now turning deadly and drawing even more media attention to 'road rage'. While Australia may enforce tougher firearms guidelines the influence of American media and culture on ours is high."

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