Researchers to Investigate Why People Continue to Drink and Drive

Drunk driving continues to be problematic across America. Alcohol-related automobile accidents cost society an estimated $51 billion a year. The fact that it is unsafe to drink and drive is not new, yet everyday across America, thousands of people continue to drink - and then get behind the wheel of a car and drive. Why?

In a recent press release, researchers at Buffalo State College announced that they have been awarded $3 million from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) to investigate this behavior. They will undertake research that will target the reasons that people decide to drink and drive.

Are there variables that can be changed that would affect the outcomes of one's decision to drink and drive? The reasons that people make the decision not to drink and drive is just as important as seeking answers to the question of why people continue to drink and drive.

"Little is known about the factors that lead individuals to initiate and continue drinking and driving behavior. By establishing a theoretical model, it will allow for the creation of specific intervention techniques that will be able to stem this behavior at its origins," said William Wieczorek, CHSR director.

While all 50 states have laws that make drunk driving a legal offense, many people continue to drink and drive.

The campaign, "Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk" was successful in slowing the number of alcohol-related deaths from 26,173 (in 1982) to 16,711 (in 1997). However, the number of deaths has basically remained stable since 1997. There were 16,919 fatalities in 2004.

The rate of injury is even larger. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2003, over 500,000 people were injured in an auto accident that was alcohol-related.

This research project will utilize prior data that was collected over a period of five years from the Buffalo Longitudinal Study of Young Men. The data was accumulated 12 years ago. While this data was not specific to drinking and driving, it was part of an investigation regarding drinking, drug use, and criminal behavior. Numerous in-depth interviews were conducted, and this data will be a starting point for work under the current grant.

Researchers also want to look at neighborhoods and geographic patterns. Using other factors such as proximity to bars, grocery stores, liquor stores, and restaurants, researchers will be looking to see if there are correlations between alcohol consumption, driving, and these neighborhoods.

They will also be interviewing many additional participants. Armed with this information, researchers hope to be able to answer "why" people continue to drink and drive.

With this information, new campaigns can be targeted that can tell people "why not" to drink and drive.

Sources:
http://www.newswise.com/p/articles/view/535438/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drunk_driving_%28United_States%29
http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/drving.htm
http://www.madd.org/