DRINKING DRIVERS IN FATAL CRASHES: VARIATIONS ACROSS AGE, GENDER, AND ETHNIC GROUPS

The objective of this study was to determine the relative involvement of drivers from four ethnic groups - Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians - in alcohol-related fatal crashes using two normalizing methods: (1) rates per vehicle mile of travel and (2) the involvement rate of drinking compared to nondrinking drivers in fatal crashes. The study was made possible by the linking of fatally injured driver records in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) with the Hyde Cause of Death (HCOD) file, which contains death certificate information and is maintained by the National Center for Health Statistics. When the probability that a driver fatally injured in a crash would have been drinking was compared across racial/ethnic groups, drivers ranging from 21 to 50 years old had the highest probability of being BAC (blood alcohol concentration)-positive. Both the young and the elderly had significantly lower probabilities of being BAC-positive. Using the ratio of drinking to nondrinking drivers in fatal crashes, Hispanics had the highest odds ratio, followed by Whites, Blacks, and Asians. The patterns for female drivers were similar to, but lower than, the male drivers. Further study results suggest a closer look is merited among the patterns within ethnic groups, and how the age and gender effects on alcohol involvement differ from one racial/ethnic group to another.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/08926484
• Supplemental Notes:
  • The 45th annual meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM) was not held due to the events of September 11, 2001. However, the papers prepared for the 45th annual meeting are published as the AAAM 45th Annual Proceedings.
• Corporate Authors:

  Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM)

  P.O. Box 4176
  Barrington, IL  United States  60011-4176
• Authors:
  • Voas, R B
  • Tippetts, A S
  • Fisher, D A
• Conference:
  • Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine 45th Annual Proceedings
  • Location: San Antonio, Texas
  • Date: 2001-9-24 to 2001-9-26
• Publication Date: 2001

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: p. 411-413
• Serial:
  • Publication of: ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF AUTOMOTIVE MEDICINE
  • Publisher: Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM)
  • ISSN: 0892-6484

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age groups; Asians; Blacks; Drunk driving; Ethnic groups; Fatalities; Gender; Hispanics; Whites
• Identifier Terms: Fatality Analysis Reporting System; Hyde Cause of Death File
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Society; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00923457
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Apr 16 2002 12:00AM