Researchers are proposing that we stop using the word ‘cyclist’ after the revelation that many people don’t view bike riders as fully human.
A study carried out by the Queensland University of Technology and Monash University examined the attitudes towards cyclists.
They noted correlation between the dehumanisation of cyclists and subsequent aggression towards them on the road.
The scientists suggested that we replaced the word ‘cyclist’ with ‘people who ride bikes’ in order to counter these attitudes and improve bike safety on the road.
More than 55% of people asked in the survey rated cyclists as not completely human, using an altered version of the iconic ape to man scale.
One of the researchers on the study, Professor Narelle Haworth, who is also the director of the Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety, argued that changing the language around cyclists would also help with their perception.
She said: “Let’s talk about people who ride bikes rather than cyclists because that’s the first step towards getting rid of this dehumanisation.
“The bigger issue is that significant numbers of both groups rank cyclists as not 100% human.
“Amongst people who ride, amongst people who don’t ride, there is still people who think that cyclists aren’t fully human.
“The dehumanisation scale is associated with the self-reporting of direct aggression.
“Using your car to deliberately block a cyclist, using your car to deliberately cut off a cyclist, throwing an object at a cyclist - these acts of direct aggression are dangerous.”
Actual incidents of aggression were shockingly common among the respondents.
Nearly a fifth said they had used their car to deliberately block a cyclist, while around one in ten had deliberately driven their car close to a cyclist or used their car to cut off a cyclist.
The co-author of the study, Dr Alexa Delbosc, said: “When you don’t think someone is ‘fully’ human, it’s easier to justify hatred or aggression towards them.
“This can set up an escalating cycle of resentment.
“If cyclists feel dehumanised by other road users, they may be more likely to act out against motorists, feeding into a self-fulfilling prophecy that further fuels dehumanisation against them.
“Ultimately we want to understand this process so we can do a better job at putting a human face to people who ride bikes, so that hopefully we can help put a stop to the abuse.”