Research
Update:
Reducing Motor Vehicle
Crashes Among Young Drivers
Simons-Morton B,
Hartos J, editors. Reducing young driver crash risk: Proceedings of an
expert conference on young drivers. Injury
Prevention 2002;8(Suppl II):ii1–ii38.
Motor
vehicle-related injuries are the biggest health threat to teenagers in
the United States, accounting for two of five deaths among teens ages
16 to 19 years. The crash risk is highest for drivers 16 years of age
due to their immaturity and limited driving experience. A series of
five research papers published in a September 2002 supplement of
Injury Prevention address reducing the crash risk among young drivers.
The papers make a compelling case for graduated driver licensing (GDL),
the system of laws and practices that gradually introduce young
drivers into the driving population.
A summary of the supplement
appears below. Injury Prevention subscribers can access
the full online supplement. CDC's
Injury Center has a limited number of print copies available. To request a copy, send an e-mail to
cdcinfo@cdc.gov.
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Traditional
driver education is insufficient for reducing the high risk of
teen crashes (Mayhew & Simpson, pp. ii3–ii8).
Most
traditional driver education provides classroom training about the
rules of the road and a few hours of behind-the-wheel training.
Research suggests that this approach is not effective in reducing
the crash risk among newly-licensed teen drivers. Driver education
programs may be improved by teaching psychomotor, perceptual, and
cognitive skills that are critical for safe driving, and by
addressing inexperience, risky behaviors, and other age-related
factors that increase the crash risk among young drivers. However,
more research into these factors is needed before they can be
addressed effectively.
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Important
risk factors highlight the need for graduated driver licensing
(Williams & Ferguson, pp. ii9–ii16).
Young,
beginning drivers have an extremely high crash risk. Certain
situations contribute to even greater risk, most notably nighttime
driving and driving with teen passengers. The GDL approach
addresses the high risks faced by young drivers by requiring an
apprenticeship of planned and supervised practice, followed by a
provisional license that places temporary restrictions on
unsupervised driving in some higher-risk situations.
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Developmental
characteristics of young drivers may contribute to their crash
risk (Arnett, pp. ii17–ii23).
Inexperience increases the
crash risk for new drivers of all ages.
However, younger novice drivers crash at higher rates than
older novice drivers. These higher crash rates may be due in part
to developmental factors such as peer influence, poor perception
of risk, and high emotionality. Research about such developmental
characteristics could increase our understanding about why young
drivers have higher crash rates and could help to improve driver
education programs and licensing policies.
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Greater
parental involvement is needed (Simons-Morton et al., pp.
ii24–31).
A growing body of research indicates that close
parental management of teen drivers can lead to less risky driving
behavior, fewer traffic tickets, and fewer crashes.
However, many parents tend to be less involved than they
could be. A recent
study indicates that parents can be motivated to increase
restrictions on their newly-licensed teens, at least during the
critical first few months of licensure. A model intervention, the
Checkpoint Program, led to increased parental limits on teenage
driving at licensure and three months after licensure.
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GDL
works (McKnight & Peck, pp. ii32–ii38).
GDL has
consistently proven effective in reducing new driver crash risk.
While research is still needed to better understand which
components of GDL are essential, it remains a promising solution
for improving teen driver safety. It may also provide the best
context for improving driver education and increasing parental
involvement, both of which could also reduce the crash risk for
teen drivers.
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