EFFECTS OF CHILD RESTRAINT LAWS ON TRAFFIC FATALITIES IN ELEVEN STATES

Mandatory child restraint laws in 11 states were evaluated for their effect on motor vehicle fatality rates among young children. Data from 1976 through 1983 were analyzed using a monthly time-series design involving 54 months' pre-law and 12 months' post-law data. The 11 states collectively had a mean of 8.8 and a standard deviation of 3.6 fatalities per month among young children. Such small frequency counts resulted in a large proportion of the variation being random. Statistical power analyses found fatality reductions of 20% to 25% following the child restraint laws would be statistically significant. Reductions of such a magnitude were not found for young children. Based on these findings, we recommend that evaluations of highway safety policies focusing on a specific age group within a single state not be limited to analyses of traffic fatalities alone. Studies employing analyses of the larger numbers of crash-induced injuries have indentified modest but important casualty reductions not found when analyzing fatalities alone. (Author/TRRL)

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/00225282
• Corporate Authors:

  Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

  428 East Preston Street
  Baltimore, MD  United States  21202
• Authors:
  • Wagenaar, A C
  • Webster, D W
  • Maybee, R G
• Publication Date: 1987-7

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: p. 726-732
• Serial:
  • Journal of Trauma, Injury, Infection and Critical Care
  • Volume: 27
  • Issue Number: 7
  • Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
  • ISSN: 0022-5282

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Chemical reduction; Child restraint systems; Fatalities; Injuries; Laws; Statistical analysis; Time series analysis; Utilization
• Old TRIS Terms: Reduction
• ITRD Terms: 1758: Child; 9009: Decrease; 5911: Efficiency; 1534: Enforcement (law); 1602: Fatality; 2163: Injury; 1556: Legislation; 1466: Passive safety system; 9149: Prevention; 1476: Safety belt; 1623: Severity (accid, injury); 8122: USA; 9084: Use; 1715: Vehicle occupant
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Highways; Law; Research; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00469957
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Institute for Road Safety Research, SWOV
• Report/Paper Numbers: HS-040 312
• Files: HSL, ITRD, TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 31 1990 12:00AM