Why Do They Do It? A Qualitative Study of Adolescent Drinking and Driving

Abstract

Despite a decline in the prevalence of fatal traffic crashes involving adolescent drinking drivers in recent years, underage drinking and driving (DD) and riding with drinking drivers (RWDD) remain serious problems. This article reports the findings of a qualitative study investigating the influence of beliefs and expectancies on adolescents’ decisions to participate in DD or RWDD. Forty-four adolescents, who in a previous survey admitted to having been involved in either DD or RWDD, were interviewed in 2000 about their experiences concerning either driving after drinking or getting into a car with a driver who had been drinking. Findings indicate that adolescent DD and RWDD are complex behaviors. Expectancies and control beliefs do not seem to influence the decision, whereas normative beliefs to some extent do. However, findings also indicate that increased enforcement of the laws may be helpful in preventing young people from getting involved in drinking and driving.

• Qualitative study
• Adolescents
• Drinking and driving
• Expectancies and beliefs

Resumen

A pesar de que se ha experimentado una disminución en accidentes automovilísticos fatales en los que los adolescentes y el alcohol son factores de influencia en los mismos, el consumo de alcohol por menores de edad mientras manejan o viajan como acompañantes en automóviles mientras consumen alcohol continua siendo un problema serio. Este ensayo presenta los resultados de un estudio cualitativo que investiga la influencia de las creencias y expectaciones de parte de los adolescentes cuando ellos toman decisiones referentes a la conducción de vehículos así como cuando son pasajeros de un vehículo y están consumiendo alcohol. Cuarenta y cuatro adolescentes quienes durante un estudio previo habían admitido el consumo de alcohol mientras conducían o eran pasajeros en un vehículo fueron entrevistados acerca de sus experiencias ya sea cuando manejaron después de consumir alcohol o cuando abordaron un vehículo sabiendo que el chofer del vehículo había consumido alcohol. Los resultados del estudio indican que ambas acciones son comportamientos complejos. Las expectaciones y las creencias controladas no parecen influenciar las decisiones mientras que las creencias normativas parecen influenciar las decisiones pero solamente hasta cierto punto. Sin embargo, los resultados también indican que una mejor aplicación de las leyes que conciernen con el consumo de alcohol por los adolescentes puede ser necesaria para prevenir para prevenir que los jóvenes consuman alcohol y manejen al mismo tiempo.

Résumé

La fréquence des accidents fatals de voiture a baissé durant les dernières années en ce qui concerne les mineurs qui conduisent après avoir bu (DD). Cependant la consommation d’alcool par les mineurs qui conduisent en état d’ivresse et le nombre de ceux qui les accompagnent (RWDD) demeurent un très grand problème. Cet article nous donne un rapport sur les conclusions d’une étude qualitative qui, basée sur les convictions et les espoirs des mineurs, recherche leur influence sur la décision prise par ces mineurs de participer à ce comportement. Dans une étude précédente, quarante quatre mineurs avaint avoué avoir été impliqués soit dans “DD” (conduire sous l’influence) soit dans “RWDD” (monter en voiture avec un conducteur qui avait bu). On leur a demandé de décrire leurs experiences soit en tant que conducteur après avoir bu ou en tant que passenger. Les résultats indiquent que les mineurs “DD” et “RWDD” démontrent des comportements complexes. Les espoirs et les convictions sur lesquelles ils croient avoir contrôle ne semblent avoir aucune influence sur leur décision tandis que, jusqu’à un certain point, les convictions de base semblent en avoir. Cependant les résultats démontrent aussi qu’il faut appliquer les lois plus rigoureusement afin d’empêcher les mineurs de conduire en état d’ivresse.

Notes

^aThe greater San Francisco Bay Area comprises Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma counties. This sampling area was selected, in part, because it is diverse in terms of urbanicity, socioeconomic status, availability of public transportation, and ethnicity. These counties contain a wide range of urban, suburban, and rural communities. Census data indicate that the target counties range from 100% urban (San Francisco) to 28% rural (Sonoma). The nonwhite populations range from 9% (Sonoma) to 46% (San Francisco). Some communities within the sampling area (e.g., San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose) have well-developed public transportation systems. Some suburban and rural communities are underserved in this regard

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Peter Nygaard

Peter Nygaard received his Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1999. He has worked as a researcher in the alcohol field since 1988. His first employment was with the Institute of Psychology at the University of Aarhus, Denmark, and he continued his career at the Centre for Alcohol and Drug Research at the University of Aarhus from 1991–1998. In January 2000 he joined the Prevention Research Center, Berkeley, CA as an Associate Research Scientist. In 2001, he became a Research Scientist with the Center. Dr. Nygaard has 13 years of research experience, mainly focusing on issues related to the prevention of alcohol-related problems. He has been engaged in community action research as well as projects focusing on prevention at the individual level. His special research interest is in intervention in social networks. Dr. Nygaard has a long publication list, mainly in Danish, but he has also been involved in international cooperation on publications focusing on community action research.

Elizabeth D. Waiters

Elizabeth Waiters completed her Ph.D. in Radio-Television-Film, with a specialization in ethnic minorities and mass media, at the University of Texas at Austin. Following the completion of her dissertation, Dr. Waiters served as a postdoctoral fellow at the Prevention Research Center where she analyzed the influence of television and magazine alcohol advertising on the drinking knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of young people. Her research focuses on issues of mass media and adolescent public health. Dr. Waiters is currently examining malt liquor fan-based internet websites and malt liquor television commercials from the 1980s and 1990s. She is also the principal investigator on a study of malt liquor and alcohol portrayals in 20 years of popular music.

Joel W. Grube

Joel W. Grube received his Ph.D. in psychology from Washington State University in 1979. He has been a Senior Research Scientist at the Prevention Research Center in Berkeley, CA since 1986 and an Associate Director at the Center from 1998 to 2002. In January 2003 he became the Director of PRC. Dr. Grube is also Director of the Center for Adolescent and Child Health Research at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation. His research focuses on social-psychological and environmental factors influencing drinking and other problem behaviors among adolescents and young adults. His current projects include a longitudinal survey study of underage drinking and driving, a longitudinal survey study on the effects of alcohol advertising on the drinking beliefs and behaviors of children and adolescents, and a longitudinal study on the effects of media on adolescent sexual risk-taking.

Deborah Keefe

Deborah Keefe was born, raised, and educated in New York State, receiving an A.B from Cornell University and an M.A. from Syracuse University. She began her work in the field of Survey Research in 1988 at the University of California at Berkeley Survey Research Center. Since that time she has worked on a variety of social science research studies, many of them in conjunction with Dr. Joel Grube, on projects involving young people and alcohol. She has experience with all phases of survey data collection, from questionnaire design through pretesting, interviewing (both in person and by telephone/CATI), data cleaning and entry, to analysis. She has conducted studies for PRC in grade schools, middle and high schools, and most recently at a private four-year university. She has supervised three studies of alcohol advertising and its effects on young people and 2 studies of underage drinking and driving. She also coauthored the “Guide to Conducting Youth Surveys” for the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.