Distracted Driving Education for High School Students. Despina Stavrinos, PhD & Benjamin McManus

Transcription

1 Distracted Driving Education for High School Students Despina Stavrinos, PhD & Benjamin McManus

2 The Problem

3 Still an epidemic billion text messages are sent in the US every month (CTIA) Slight decrease in fatal crashes due to DD, but increase in injuries from 2011 to 2012 (NHTSA) Drivers under the age of 20 account for the largest proportion of fatal DD-related crashes (NHTSA)

4 Prevention Efforts Legislation Enforcement Technology Education... But do they work???

5 Objective of Study To determine whether a one-day educational event effectively changes young drivers attitudes towards distracted driving

6 Approach Develop collaborative relationships with high-profile corporate sponsors

7 Study Design Baseline Survey (20 minutes) Driving habits, attitudes towards distracted driving Intervention (16-20 minutes) Discuss dangerous distractions; driving in simulator Weeks 1-6 Typical driver s education curriculum Post-test Survey (20 minutes) Driving habits, attitudes towards distracted driving School Award (10 minutes) Donation of ipad and distribution of completion certificates

8 Survey Distracted driving attitudes (33 items) Effectiveness of prevention efforts (e.g., ads, legislation) Parental influences Perceived safety as a passenger Perceived ability to drive distracted Attachment to phone Why/when engage in distracted driving

9 Intervention Top 10 deadliest distractions 1) Texting 2) Taking pictures 3) Talking on phone 4) Passengers 5) Surfing the net 6) Using GPS 7) Reaching 8) Reading 9) Eating/Drinking 10) Grooming

10 School Characteristics % Minority Median Income School 1 72% $62, School 2 42% $46, School 3 8% $78, Driver s Education (n) Total N = 306* *Two more schools scheduled for March-April

11 Preliminary Findings

12 Participant Characteristics N = 242 (90% participation rate) Mean age = 16.02, SD =.48 Range: years 59% female 43% minority (primarily African American) 83% have primary access to a vehicle

13 Licensure No Permit or License Learner's Permit Only Full Driver's License

14 Driving Characteristics Variable Mean SD Range Days per week driven Total hours of driving experience Total miles of driving experience *0 = 13% *7 = 19% *0 = 7% *0 = 6%

15 Percent People you feel comfortable riding with while they text and drive Friend(s) Parent(s) 40.5

16 Percent When a friend is texting while driving, I Take phone from them Ignore it None of my friends text and drive Get nervous Offer to text for them Tell them to stop

17 How much of a personal threat to your personal safety are...? Drivers texting or ing Drivers checking or updating social media Drivers taking selfies > 95% sample indicated these were a serious threat Drivers talking on cell phones 1/3 of sample did not consider this a personal threat

18 How acceptable do you personally feel it is for a driver to...? Type text messages or s while driving Check or update social media while driving Take selfies while driving 95% sample indicated these were unacceptable Talk on a hands-free cell phone 3/4 of sample considered this unacceptable Talk on a hands-held cell phone 1/3 of sample considered this unacceptable

19 How strongly do you oppose or support...? Having a law against reading, typing, or sending text messages or while driving 80% sample supports this legislation Having a law against hand-held cell phone use while driving for all drivers 60% of sample supports this legislation Having federal gov t regulate non-driving related tech in cars to make sure they don t distract drivers ½ of sample considered this unacceptable

20 Compared to others my age, I am more capable of safely texting while driving Disagree 7 6 t (235) = 4.54, p < Agree 1 Male Female

21 How aware are you of your own distracted driving behaviors? Very aware 7 t (232) = 2.31, p < Not at all 1 Male Female

22 What are the reasons you should not text and drive?

23 What are the reasons you should not text and drive? 1. Jesus 2. Said 3. So

24 Challenges Administrative Public-Private relationships IRB School constraints Time/scheduling Space

25 Future Directions Complete data collection at scheduled schools Analyze data and publish findings Consider wider-scale implementation if results indicate a positive change in attitudes Simulator-based training for distracted driving prevention

26 Funding Sponsors

27 Acknowledgements TRIP Lab Steve Taub, U-Haul County Superintendent High School principals, faculty, staff, and students UAB Roybal Center UAB Psychology UAB Engineering