Do Parents Need A Lesson In Self-Control? Research Reveals The Rise Of 'School Run Rage'.

Sept. 7, 2012 - PRLog -- Many parents will be breathing a sigh of relief as their children head back to school after the long summer break.

But any hopes they had of avoiding extra stress, family rows and the unruly behaviour of their offspring could be dashed with the return of the dreaded school run.

A poll, by national car supermarket Carcraft, reveals that one in five parents have experienced road rage while driving their children to and from school - with more women than men admitting to seeing red on the road at this time.

Almost a quarter (24%) of mums admitted that the school run was the “most likely” time they felt angry behind the wheel, compared with 15% of men.

The poll of 1000 parents also revealed that women - contrary to the adage about them being the fairer sex - are much less tolerant than men about traffic jams, drivers who queue jump and rudeness.

Almost twice as many women (61%) than men (32%) said this type of behaviour annoyed them with more men than women prepared to show kindness to others by giving learners and old people an easy time and a wide berth.

Displays of road-rage differ between the sexes, with women more likely to flash their lights use their horn or seethe silently while men prefer to wave their fists, swear or use hand gestures.

Psychologist Mike Guttridge said: “After six weeks of less rushing around for most of us, Britain’s drivers will have forgotten the true challenges of the school run!

“Having kids in the car provides additional distractions and may affect reaction time to stimulus on the roads.”

A spokesperson for Carcraft added, “To combat "school run rage" and to ensure you drive happy, we'd advise following a few simple steps: leave ten minutes earlier, keep kids occupied on the drive so distractions from them are kept to a minimum, play some relaxing music and take some deep breaths to keep any road rage at bay."

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For more information please contact Ben Ormsby or Rick Guttridge at Smoking Gun PR on 0161 839 1986 or email  media@smokinggunpr.co.uk