Why safety measures can result in dangerous behaviours
Better safe than sorry! We’ve all heard that before, but are there times when increased safety can have an opposite effect than what we would expect?
In 2004, the National Hockey League (NHL) cancelled its regular season, which pushed some of its players to play in European leagues instead. Those leagues mandate that players wear visors when they play, which is not compulsory for all players in the NHL. “Great!” one might think. “Players are less likely to get hit in the eye or get severely injured by a flying puck!” The observed effects, however, were not the increased safety one might have expected. Rather, when looking at the players who did not wear a visor in the NHL but were required to in the European leagues, it was apparent that this added sense of security encouraged players to behave more aggressively and take more risks. This is reflected in the extra 0.19 penalty minutes per game they received, which is about a 17 percent increase compared to the 1.14 penalty minutes per game estimated as a basis. But what caused this increase in recklessness?
This kind of behaviour is described by the Peltzman effect, named after the economist Sam Peltzman. Peltzman led a study in which he analysed the number of deaths caused by automobile accidents before and after security measures—such as seatbelts and airbags—were introduced. Surprisingly, he found that the death rate remained the same. He observed that the introduction of safety gears made drivers more comfortable taking risks, as they relied on their new and improved equipment to keep them safe. Consequently, there was a higher number of pedestrian casualties, as they had no additional protection from the drivers’ increased carelessness. Peltzman concluded that a heightened sense of safety can cause one to take more risks, which cancels out the benefits of the new safety measures. In other words, we adjust our behaviour based on the level of perceived risk. A greater sense of danger will encourage more careful behaviour, whereas an enlarged sense of safety has the opposite effect—a phenomenon known as risk compensation.
Similar effects have been observed in extreme sports, such as skydiving. The rate of skydiving deaths has remained constant, even after equipment was made more reliable. In fact, in The Click Moment by Frans Johansson, skydiver Bill Booth states that, “The safer skydiving gear becomes, the more chances skydivers will take, in order to keep the fatality rate constant.” Relying on the equipment to keep them safe, skydivers will attempt more daring and dangerous jumps than they would have otherwise, which can lead to fatal consequences.
It is not hard to imagine a scenario where students also experience risk compensation. Suppose a student with a very heavy workload knows that one of their professors, Dr. Doe, is lenient on deadlines and is more than likely to grant an extension, so long as it is requested politely. It is probable that this student will prioritise work in other courses and hope that they can get an extension for Dr. Doe’s assignments. The safety the student feels from Dr. Doe’s generous behaviour is reflected by an increased likelihood of the student engaging in risky behaviour by not turning in their assignment on time.
Although risk-taking can lead to negative outcomes, it is also a prerequisite for almost every kind of advancement. Humans would never have left their cave-dwellings millennia ago if they were not willing to take some risks. Taking an unexpected or challenging course of action can lead to new opportunities and skill development. The world’s most successful people have inevitably taken risks to get where they are. Thus, if greater safety measures can embolden people to take greater risks, these measures would seem desirable as they would enable us to push ourselves further and improve. Situations with uncertain outcomes are essential for our learning and growth, and attempting to shield ourselves from them would be a mistake—but we still need to be cognisant of how increased safety might lead us to take more risk than is optimal.
