THE "SLOB" CAMPAIGN: AN EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH TO DRINK- DRIVING MASS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS

From July to September 1974, the traffic accident research unit of the New South Wales Department of Motor Transport conducted a 10 week drink-driving communications campaign on radio, TV and in the press. It became known as the "slob" campaign. It represented a unique attempt to change attitudes towards drinking and driving among Sydney residents aged 17-30 years, with a well researched, scientifically evaluated media campaign. Past research had shown that a major barrier to reducing the incidence of drink- related crashes lay in the community's permissive attitudes which give rise to strong social pressures to drink and drive irresponsibly. The "slob" campaign was designed to initiate a change in these attitudes by depicting the irresponsible drinking driver as a social misfit to be condemned. It attacked traditional customs such as "shouting" which encourage excessive drinking, and reported the "facts" on drinking and driving to build on community knowledge established in an earlier information campaign. The 'slob' campaign was evaluated by means of before and after surveys of knowledge and attitudes in the target population, conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The implications of the "slob" experience for the future use of mass media advertising in the drink driving area are discussed. (TRRL)

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/724040161
• Corporate Authors:

  New South Wales Department of Main Roads,Australia

  Traffic Accident Research Unit, 56 Rothschild Avenue
  Roseberry, New South Wales,   Australia 
• Authors:
  • Freedman, K
  • Rothman, J
• Publication Date: 1979-9

Media Info

• Features: Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 50 p.
• Serial:
  • Publication of: New South Wales Dept of Motor Transport, Australia
  • Publisher: New South Wales Dept of Motor Transport, Australia
  • ISSN: 0314-9846

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; Attitudes; Before and after studies; Crashes; Drivers; Drunk drivers; Drunk driving; Education; Evaluation; Evaluation and assessment; Intoxication; Mass media; Prevention; Printed publicity; Publicity; Radio; Safety; Social factors; Television; Traffic crashes
• Uncontrolled Terms: Driver age; Press coverage
• Old TRIS Terms: Communication media
• ITRD Terms: 1643: Accident; 2267: Attitude (psychol); 9148: Before and after study; 1772: Driver; 2231: Drunkenness; 2284: Education; 9020: Evaluation (assessment); 8573: Publicity
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies; Society; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00324840
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: ARRB
• ISBN: 7240-4016-1
• Report/Paper Numbers: Res Rpt. No. 2/79 Monograph
• Files: ITRD, TRIS, ATRI
• Created Date: Jun 12 1981 12:00AM