International Journal for Innovation Education and Research www.ijier.net Vol. 3-3, 2015 International Educative Research Foundation and Publisher © 2015 pg. 42 Risky Driving Behaviors among Medical Students in the Middle East: Identifying Areas for Intervention Salman Alzayani, MD, MSc*, Randah R. Hamadeh, BSc, MSc, DPhil (Oxon)** *,**Department of Family and Community Medicine College of Medicine and Medical Sciences Arabian Gulf University Address: P.O.Box: 22979, Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain * salmanhz@agu.edu.bh, ** randah@agu.edu.bh Abstract A cross sectional study was conducted on medical students enrolled in the Arabian Gulf University in the KiŶgdoŵ of BahraiŶ. The oďjeĐtiǀe ǁas to desĐriďe ŵediĐal studeŶts’ risk-taking behaviors while driving and to provide recommendations for promoting safe driving behaviors among them. A self administered anonymous questionnaire was used, which included questions on demography and driving behaviors. Medical students demonstrated risk taking behaviors while driving, as 40.1% of them did not use their seatbelts, 49.6% speeded (>100km/hr), 54.7% talked on their mobile phones and 45.9% wrote/read text messages while driving. Female students had lower driving risk taking behaviors compared to males. Driving risk taking behaviors declined as students progressed in their medical years. Saudi and Kuwaiti students had more risk taking behaviors than other nationalities. Driving risk taking behaviors cluster among students according to gender, medical year and nationality. Urgent interventions are needed to promote safe driving behaviors among students. 1. Introduction Adolescents engage in a wide range of risky behaviors facing twice the risk of mortality and morbidity faced by their younger peers. (Tymula et al., 2012). The population of drivers who are 18–25 years old represents a significant proportion of the people who are killed on the road. This category of drivers tends to take more risks while driving than do older drivers (Cestac, Paran, and Delhomme, 2011). Distracted driving is a highly prevalent behavior among university students who have higher confidence in their own driving skills and ability to multitask (Hill et al., 2014). Talking and texting while driving poses extreme safety risks especially among younger drivers. These attitudes were related to increased recklessness exhibited while engaging in this behavior (Harrison, 2011). Studies in the Arabian Gulf region have addressed specific lifestyle behaviors of health professionals such as health-promoting lifestyle (Hamadeh, 1994, Al-Shahri and Mian, 1997, Behbehani et al., 2004 and Al-Kandari and Vidal, 2007). Arabian Gulf University (AGU) students are valuable advocates for families as they were able also to offer practical help in lifestyle behavior changes, communication, and community-resource use (Grant, Naseeb and Al-Garf, 2007). Arabian Gulf University (AGU) is a regional university established in 1983 and based in the Kingdom of Bahrain. It has two colleges, the College of Medicine and Medical Sciences (CMMS) and the College of Graduate Studies. AGU hosts students of both genders from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries (Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, UAE and Qatar), where students are admitted based on their country’s quota. Thus, AGU provides a unique opportunity to suggest guidelines to medical schools in the