Young Driver Intervention Study: Preventing Motor Vehicle Crashes

United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Health Behavior; Accidents, Traffic

Treatments: Behavioral: Teen Driving: Program for parents

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other U.S. Federal agency; NIH

Identifiers

NCT00062829

N01-HD-8-3285

N01HD83285

Z01HD001707-01 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a program designed to reduce teen crashes and risky driving by increasing parental monitoring and restriction of their adolescents' driving practices during the first year of licensed driving.

Full description

Motor vehicle crashes are the major cause of death and disability among adolescents from 16 through 20 years of age. While adolescents between the ages of 16 and 19 years constitute only 5% of all licensed drivers, they are involved in 15% of the crashes in which they or other occupants are killed. In fact, 16-year-old drivers are more than 20 times as likely to have a crash as the general population of drivers and 17-year-olds are more than 6 times as likely. In addition, for each adolescent motor vehicle fatality, approximately 100 nonfatal injuries occur, making crashes the leading cause of disability due to head and spinal cord injuries in adolescents.

Parents can have a huge impact on adolescent behavior. However, the impact of parenting practices on adolescent driving behavior has not yet been examined. This study aims to determine the efficacy of an intervention designed to increase parents' involvement in, and parental restrictions on, their teens' early driving experiences in order to reduce the number of tickets and crashes among teen drivers. The intervention provides educational materials to parents and adolescents from the time the adolescent gets a learner's permit through the first 6 months of licensure. These persuasive communications are tailored to adolescents' level of driving experience. The intervention materials make explicit the increased risk associated with adolescent driving and methods for reducing risk through increased parental involvement in and restriction of driving.

Participants were recruited in the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicle offices as adolescents applied for their learner's permits. Participants were randomized to either the intervention group or the control group. The control group received standard information about driving not related to the specific teen risks focused on in the intervention group materials. All participants completed interviews at study entry, licensure, 3 months after licensure, 6 months after licensure, and 12 months after licensure. Parents were asked about their expectations and parenting practices regarding their adolescents' driving behaviors. Adolescents were asked about their driving practices and their parents' rules and restrictions regarding driving. The driving records for each adolescent were obtained from the state motor vehicle administration and examined 18 months after licensure.

Enrollment: 3,743 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 16 to 16 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Lives with parent/guardian at least 50% of the time
• Obtains learner's driving permit
• Family members are able to complete interviews in English

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Factorial Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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3,743 participants in 1 patient group

Teen Driving: Program for parents

Other group

Description:

A behavioral intervention targeting driving risks unique to young drivers, including completing a behavioral contract, was administered to the intervention group. The control group received safety information appropriate for new drivers.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Teen Driving: Program for parents