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Abstract
Objective: Determine rate of college student alcohol-related vehicular traffic fatalities in Virginia during 2007. Participants: Undergraduates at colleges and universities in Virginia. Methods: Institutions with membership in the American College Health Association were invited to participate in a survey. Data collected from institutional reports of student deaths due to vehicular accidents. Results: Twenty-four institutions were invited to participate. Sixteen responded (response rate = 67%), comprising total enrollment of 117,100 for 17- to 24-year-olds (56% of total college population in state). Five traffic deaths were reported, representing 4.3 deaths per 100,000 students. Based on statewide statistics that estimate alcohol contributes to 38.9% of traffic deaths, rate of alcohol-related motor vehicle deaths is 1.7 deaths per 100,000 college students in Virginia, which is 89% lower than leading national estimates. Conclusions: These findings suggest that past estimates of alcohol-related vehicular deaths among college students are overstated.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Although no funding was received specifically for this study, 2 centers under the Department of Student Health, the Gordie Center for Alcohol and Substance Education and the National Social Norms Institute, receive funding from a variety of sources, including Anheuser-Busch companies and its charitable foundation, the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention, the Gordie Foundation, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and the Parents Program of the University of Virginia Fund.