Driving personalities fall into different categories. Below, we've given you a brief synopsis of each category. Which driving personality best applies to you?

Are You a Defensive Driver?

Everyone should aspire to be a defensive driver. Defensive drivers have the strengths of all the other driving personality types, making them the masters of the road. Defensive drivers' key characteristics include:

• Calm, courteous behaviour
• Alertness—which means scanning ahead for dangers and watching the surrounding drivers
• Knowledge of national and local traffic laws and practices
• Obedience to traffic laws, including wearing a seatbelt
• Risk avoidance

Defensive drivers don't do anything that will endanger themselves or the people around them. This doesn't mean that they drive passively, though—they just drive responsibly. For example, the typical defensive driver:

• Makes safe, legal turns and passes
• Checks blind spots when passing
• Leaves plenty of room when passing, driving, or stopping behind other cars
• Drives the speed limit
• Leaves mobile phones, music players, and other electronics alone

A defensive driver gets where he or she needs to go safely and efficiently—without speeding or using excessive caution. If you fit under this label, good for you! You've put yourself on the fast track to a relatively incident-free driving future.

Are You an Aggressive Driver?

Many (but not all) young people tend to gravitate towards aggressive driving. This means that you like taking risks, getting your way, and not taking any rudeness from other drivers. You like to assert yourself. Typical aggressive drivers also have characteristics like:

• Risky, frustrated, or even angry behaviour
• Heightened sense of independence
• Selective alertness to the drivers causing your frustration
• Selective obedience to traffic laws, especially concerning speed limits, stop signs, and other traffic signals

Aggressive drivers tend to have less concern for other drivers and more concern for their own peace of mind. If you're an aggressive driver, you'll probably have habits like:

• Speeding
• Tailgating
• Weaving in and out of traffic
• Honking frequently
• Yelling or gesturing angrily at drivers who frustrate you
• Road raging—or doing everything in your power to thwart or anger drivers who frustrate you

If any of these characteristics or habits apply to you, then you might have a bit of a problem. Aggressive driving causes many accidents every year. So, to keep yourself and other drivers safe, make a special effort to keep yourself calm and obey traffic laws. Don't go after drivers who upset you, and drive as safely and responsibly as you possibly can. You can drive with a little fiery boldness, but you shouldn't drive dangerously.

Are You a Passive-Aggressive Driver?

Passive-aggressive drivers have a few characteristics in common with aggressive drivers:

• They block other drivers from changing lanes.
• They "covertly" follow other drivers to thwart or frustrate them.
• They tailgate.
• They take limited risks.

However, unlike aggressive drivers, passive-aggressive drivers don't want to appear confrontational. They want the rude or unsafe driving to look like karma to the driver who frustrated them. Passive-aggressive drivers don't tend to speed or honk, and they definitely don't gesture at the drivers around them. They simply turn themselves into an innocent-looking obstacle for the driver who upset them.

If this description applies to you, follow the advice detailed in the aggressive driving section. You can assert yourself while driving—just don't drive dangerously, and don't make anyone have to drive aggressively to get away from you.

Are You a Passive Driver?

Passive drivers cause as much frustration as aggressive or passive-aggressive drivers. Their characteristics include:

• Calm and courteous, but timid and hesitant behaviour
• Alertness—similar to a defensive driver, but without as much consideration for the concern of others
• Knowledge of and obedience to national and local traffic laws and practices
• Extreme risk avoidance

Passive drivers tend to drive safely. However, they also (whether deliberately or inadvertently) turn themselves into obstacles for the drivers around them because of their habits:

• They drive under the speed limit.
• They get into turn lanes long before they should.
• They slow down at turns, stop signs, and stoplights long before they should.
• They leave unusually large gaps between themselves and other drivers.

Although you'll stay safer if you drive passively as opposed to aggressively, you could still cause a lot of problems. People will have to drive aggressively to get around you—some of them may even road rage if your driving frustrates them. Make a special effort to bolster your confidence and drive the speed limit to avoid these problems.

Are You a Distracted Driver?

A distracted driver can drive aggressively, passive-aggressively, or passively. However, a few habits set them apart:

• They text or call on their mobile phones while the car is in motion.
• They put on makeup, finish their hair, or adjust their clothing while they drive.
• They eat food while they drive.
• They play with music players or radios while they drive.
• They pay attention only to the cars immediately around them, not the cars around those cars—after all, they already have divided attention.
• They may swerve if a car comes into the lane next to them, often when they don't need to serve. They had their attention elsewhere, so the sudden movement makes then react to a potential (but highly unlikely) accident.

Many people drive this way, so don't feel bad if do have any of these habits. Simply make the effort to put all distractions away so you can focus on driving.