Indiana Residents' Perceptions of Driving and Lower Blood Alcohol Concentration

Abstract

Since Congress passed .08 blood alcohol concentration (BAC) as the national standard for impaired driving in October 2000, 28 U.S. States including Indiana have enacted .08 BAC law. This study investigated perceived impact of the .08 law among Indiana residents and their attitudinal and perceptional changes since the enforcement of the law. The focus of this study was to examine demographic differences in these changes. Using random-digit dialing that included unpublished numbers and new listings, a representative sample of 525 adult Indiana residents ages 18 or older was interviewed. Of the total respondents, 61% (n=320) reported having 12 or more drinks in a year, 15% (n=81) reported a decrease in the number of alcohol drinking occasions compared to their drinking behavior before the passage of the .08 law and 30% advocated further reduction of the legal limit of impaired driving below .08 g/dl, which reflects the perception of increased safety. Even though 38% of the total respondents expressed that the BAC law should be enforced only when drinking and driving was a factor in an accident, 75% acknowledged that their driving skills became worse after consuming a couple of drinks. Chi-square and logistic regression analyses indicated that gender, education and income were significant predictors for the majority of attitudinal and perceptional outcome variables regarding drinking and driving or .08 BAC law whereas race/ethnicity, age, employment status, religion and political views contributed little to the prediction.