The article in question has been published in a newspaper and has highlighted data collected by an insurance company on states in which drivers are less skilled. Nonetheless, the credibility of said report is not necessarily top-notch. First and foremost, it is important to acknowledge that the assessment was conducted by GMAC Insurance, a private organization with potential biases and no valid background that would classify the research as valuable. Instead, if the assessment was performed by researchers and published in a scientific journal after being peer-reviewed, the information would acquire more reliability.
Another element that decreases the confidence in the credibility of the article is the measure that was applied to determine driving skills. Namely, the insurance company has conducted the assessment based on the data acquired through a mobile voice tech company that examined answers to driving test questions from different states (Mayerowitz, 2009). Thus, it is uncertain whether the participants were aware of the survey details or were in a comfortable position to answer the questions correctly. The lack of a controlled environment in which the researchers would ask the questions or administer the test disturbs results. Moreover, the questions that were distributed were not approved by any organization and may have been inappropriate in this particular setting.
To conclude, it is certain that the study does not represent a good approach to answering the research question aiming to determine the state with the worst drivers in the country. Namely, research that is conducted by a private organization without expertise in the field and not based on standardized tests or peer-reviewed elements cannot effectively answer a question such as the current one. As a result, the findings cannot be considered fully valid and reliable.
References
Mayerowitz, S. (2009). Top states with America’s worst drivers. ABC News.