Child passenger protection : knowledge, attitudes, and behavior of Tennessee parents

The leading cause of death to children over one month of age and less than 4 years of age is the automobile crash. Yet, the technology is available to prevent or reduce injuries through proper use of a crashworthy child restraint system. Unfortunately, most child (and adult) passengers ride unprotected.

The present low level of child passenger protection has serious implications for the development of lifetime passenger safety habits. In addition to protecting the child in the present situation, consistent proper child restraint system use contributes to appropriate habit formation.

In 1977, Tennessee became the first and only state in America where child restraint system use is required under certain conditions. An evaluation of the law and a public information and education program on child passenger safety is being conducted by the Tennessee Governor's Office of Highway Safety and The University of Tennessee in conjunction with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The present study was conducted in cooperation with this evaluation project.

The present study focuses on the development of an improved understanding of the factors which may mediate behavioral changes related to child restraint system usage. As part of this focus, overt behavioral change in response to the external environmental condition of a new usage law was examined. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed.

Differences in beliefs of parents in the different user groups and assessment periods were tested using multivariate and univariate analysis of variance (MANOVA and ANOVA) for the continuous variables and chi-square analysis for the discrete variables. Correlations among the dependent variables were computed, along with descriptive statistics for all variables. The results of the qualitative analysis were consistent with the results of the quanitative analysis.

The sample was drawn from Tennessee residents who were parents of at least one child less than 4 years of age. The subject pool consisted of those parents who were observed at two points by researchers of the Tennessee Child Passenger Safety Program in the five largest urban areas and three small city areas in Tennessee.

Parents who use child restraint systems with their children tended to perceive less cost to parents and less cost to children associated with usage than did nonusers. Users were more likely to be aware of the law than were nonusers. They also tended to indicate greater support for government regulation and greater support for adult restraint system use than did nonusers.

Parents interviewed after the law took effect were more likely to be aware of it than parents interviewed before the law took effect. They also had more accurate knowledge of the law than did parents measured approximately three months before the law took effect.

The potential impact of gender of parent and type of public information and education program received on parents' beliefs, knowledge, and attitudes was also considered. Although gender differences

vi

did not emerge, some differences between the two types of public information and education program received were found.

Further investigation of the interrelationships of factors mediating the usage decision is advocated. A model for analyzing the usage decision is recommended as a basis for additional research. It consists of three broad categories called predisposing factors, enabling factors, and reinforcing factors. An improved understanding of these factors and their interrelationships will assist policymakers and program designers in increasing child restraint system usage.