Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #101057

Bruce G. Simons-Morton, EdD, MPH, DESPR, NICHD, NIH, Prevention Research Branch, 6100 Executive Blvd, 7B13M, Rockville, MD 20852, 301-496-5674, Mortonb@mail.nih.gov and Neil Lerner, PhD, Westat, 1650 Research Blvd, Rockville, MD 20850-3195.

The association between teenage passengers and crash risks among young drivers may be due to risky driving behavior. We investigated the effect on two measures of risky driving of the presence of young male and female passengers. Vehicles exiting from parking lots at ten high schools were observed and the occupants were identified by gender and age (teen or adult). At a nearby site the speed and headway of passing traffic were recorded using video and LIDAR technology. Teenage drivers drove faster than the general traffic and allowed shorter headways, particularly in the presence of a male teenage passenger. Both male and female teenage drivers allowed shorter headways (relative to no passenger or a female passenger) in the presence of a male teenage passenger, while the presence of a female teenage passenger resulted in longer headways for male teenage drivers. Overall, the observed rate of high risk driving (defined as speed >15 mph or more above the posted speed limit and/or headway of <1.0 second) for the teen male driver/male passenger condition was about double that of general traffic. In conclusion, the presence of male teenage passengers was associated with risky driving behavior among teenage drivers.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify methods for assessing speed and frontal headway as risky driving behaviors.
• Examine differences in speed and frontal headway among young drivers and adult driviers.
• Examine differences in risky driving behavior among young drivers in the presence of teen passengers.
• Examing differences in risky driving behavior among young drivers with male compared with female teen passengers.
• Discuss the implications of the findings for driver licensing policy and parental management of novice teen drivers.

Keywords: Adolescents, Motor Vehicles

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.