The Psychology Behind Sheffield’s New Bollards

The streets of Sheffield have recently seen a strange development. Where once were unremarkable parking bollards now stand child-shaped bollards.

These bollards stand at the same height as a normal bollard… or as a child. Located near Brightside Nursery School, the figures are painted to look like real children. The effect, however, is unsettling to many. But are they effective?

At Barriers Direct, one of the UK’s largest suppliers of Bollards a representative said;

“Sheffield is not the only place that has adopted child bollards in recent years. They are popping up throughout the UK in close proximity to schools, for the stated purpose of reminding drivers to slow use caution. The hope is that the child bollards will remind the drivers of the presence of actual children nearby, and encourage them to drive particularly carefully.”

The bollards are not cheap either, costing more than £300. Not an insignificant investment for city councils which are having to carefully consider budgers. Whether the bollards will actually have their intended effect is yet to be determined.

It Takes a Village

We’ve all heard the saying “it takes a village to raise a child”. Most people will protect a child from danger, even going to heroic lengths, even though they are not the parent. In fact, a recent study suggests that early humans may have banded together in large part to help raise children.

It makes sense– cooperate helps insure the survival of the species. These bollards may help tap into that instinct for protection of children that is common among humanity.

However, it is worth pointing out that a child bollard is not the same thing as an actual child. They are supposed to remind drivers that they are near a school, hoping to call to mind the children in the area. But whether or not this is effective needs further study.

There are concerns that after a time drivers will simply become accustomed to the child bollards, affording them no more attention than they would to anything else they see on their daily drives.

Snake Detection Theory

Another possible scientific basis for the child bollards is snake detection theory. This theory suggests that early humans evolved better eyesight in large part driven by the need to detect snakes that were camouflaged in the environment. The theory goes that, as time has gone by, we are still predisposed to view this sort of pattern. Anyone who has ever seen a garden hose out of the corner of their eye and jumped back, thinking it was a snake, will be familiar with the phenomenon.

While obviously not snake shaped, the child bollards could work through a similar corner of the eye phenomenon. An inattentive driver might see the bollards out of the corner of his or her eye and, think it was a real child, drive more slowly. Granted this would only work the first time a person drove past, but it would likely stick in the person’s mind that there was a school there and they should be cautious. This memory would of course be refreshed each time they saw the child bollard.

At the same time, the concern has been raised that the bollards might simply act as a distraction, causing drivers to be even less attentive to the road as they stare at the bollard.

Conclusion

The jury is still out on whether the child bollards will be effective. While they serve a valuable purpose in reminding drivers of children in the area, they can also be distracting and downright creepy. Time will tell whether these little bollards will have a positive effect on safe driving near the schools they guard.