People who take risks on the road, such as speeding, probably developed those attitudes while still a learner, a new study suggests.

In fact, a closer observation of learners' attitudes to road safety could predict those more likely to become dangerous drivers.

UK scientists set out to investigate when risky attitudes to driving develop and if these affect later driving behaviour.

Almost 1,600 people aged between 14 and 23 were questioned about their views on driving behaviour in 2004. At that time, only one in five had full driving licences.

They were then questioned again in 2007 when they were aged between 18 and 27. By this time, two in three had full licences.

The study found that the more driving experience or training a person got between 2004 and 2007, the more risky their attitude became.

While in 2004, the fully qualified drivers were more likely to show risky behaviours on the road, by 2007, attitudes had become riskier among those who had passed their driving tests since 2004.

The study also found that the attitudes to speeding among drivers in 2004 - whether full or learner drivers - strongly predicted their actual speeding behaviour by 2007.

"One possibility is that confidence in the ability to handle speed and experience of the relatively forgiving nature of the road environment makes drivers feel that speeding is less risky than they thought initially," the scientists from the University of Sheffield said.

They suggested that more emphasis on road behaviour and safety should be incorporated at the learning stage, rather than simply focusing on technical competence.

Details of these findings are published in the journal, Injury Prevention.