Understanding children's injury-risk behavior: wearing safety gear can lead to increased risk taking

The present study examined whether school-age children show risk compensation and engage in greater risk taking when wearing safety gear compared to when not doing so when running an obstacle course containing hazards that could lead to physical injury. Because sensation seeking has been shown to influence risk taking, this child attribute was also assessed and related to risk compensation. Children 7-12 years of age were videotaped navigating the obstacle course twice, once wearing safety gear and once without safety gear, with reverse directions used to minimize possible practice effects. The time it took the child to run through the course and the number of reckless behaviors (e.g., falls, trips, bumping into things) that the child made while running the course were compared for the gear and no-gear conditions. Results indicated that children went more quickly and behaved more recklessly when wearing safety gear than when not wearing gear, providing evidence of risk compensation. Moreover, those high in sensation seeking showed greater risk compensation compared with other children. Implications for childhood injury prevention are discussed.     

Finding the daredevils: development of a Sensation Seeking Scale for children that is relevant to physical risk taking

OBJECTIVE: There were two objectives in this research. First, to develop and evaluate the criterion validity of a questionnaire measure of sensation seeking in children, by examining how scores on this instrument relate to various indices of physical risk taking in children 7-12 years of age. Second, to develop both a parent-report and child-report version of the instrument. METHODS: Drawing on the literature, items tapping five potential aspects of sensation seeking were developed, with parents and children responding to comparable items. For each of these five subscales, internal reliability estimates were computed separately for the parent-report and child-report versions. To establish criterion validity, subscale scores were related to three indices of children's risk taking commonly used in research: actual risk taking, intentions-to-risk take, self-reports about risk taking on a standardized questionnaire. RESULTS: On both the child-report and parent-report versions, the same three of the five subscales yielded acceptable internal reliability scores and significantly related to the various indices of risk taking. CONCLUSIONS: This new measure adequately assesses aspects of sensation seeking relevant to children's risk taking. Because individuals high in sensation seeking engage in greater risk taking and are at increased risk of injury, this instrument may prove particularly useful to aid in identifying those children most likely to engage in injury-risk behaviors so that targeted interventions can be applied to this group.     

Self reported risk taking and risk compensation in skiers and snowboarders are associated with sensation seeking

In alpine skiing, a controversial discussion has been taking place regarding the potential influence of wearing a ski helmet on the individual level of risk taking behaviour. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether self reported risk taking behaviour and self reported risk compensation are associated with the personality trait sensation seeking (SS) in alpine skiing and snowboarding. In total, 683 persons (36% males and 64% females) completed an online-survey about attitudes and use of protective gear in winter sports including the German version of the sensation seeking scale form V. A logistic regression analysis including gender, age, nationality, preferred winter sport, self reported skiing ability, mean skiing time per season, use of ski helmets, and SS total score was used to estimated adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (95 CI) for self reported risk taking behaviour. Regression analysis revealed that a more risky behaviour increased with male gender (OR: 2.7), with an age < 25 years (OR: 1.6), with skiing (OR: 1.3), higher skill level (OR: 5.7), and a mean skiing time > 28 days per season (OR: 2.2). In addition, SS total score was significantly higher in more risky compared to more cautious people (23.8 vs. 20.3, p < .001). Ski helmet use was not found to be predictive for a more risky behaviour (p > .05). Also, skiers and snowboarders with self reported risk compensation while wearing a ski helmet had higher SS total scores compared to those who did not report risk compensation (23.8 vs. 20.9, p = .001). In addition, self reported risk compensation in helmet wearers increased with an age < 25 years (OR: 2.2), a higher skill level (OR: 2.5) and a mean skiing time > 28 days per season (OR: 2.1). In conclusion, self reported risk taking and self reported risk compensation are associated with higher sensation seeking total scores. The personality trait sensation seeking, not wearing of a ski helmet, appears to be associated with riskier behaviour on the ski slopes.     

Increased patterns of risky behaviours among helmet wearers in skiing and snowboarding

Background

There has been an ongoing debate as to whether wearing helmets in skiing and snowboarding increases the risk tolerance of participants.

Objective

To investigate the roles of demographic and personality variables, and helmet usage in predicting risk taking behaviours in a cross-sectional sample of intermediate and proficient skiers and snowboarders.

Methods

Risk taking in skiing was measured using a validated 10-item self-report measure which was designated as the outcome variable in a three step hierarchical regression. Independent predictors included age, sex, education, sport, ability, helmet usage, and personality traits that have been associated with risk taking: impulsivity and sensation seeking.

Results

In the final regression model, helmet use significantly predicted variance in risk taking (standardized β = .10, p = .024), and the relationship remained after accounting for variance due to demographic variables and general trait measures. The partial relationship between risk taking and sex, ability, impulsivity, and sensation seeking were also significant (p < .05).

Conclusion

High sensation seeking, high impulsivity, male sex, and proficiency were associated with increased patterns of risky behaviours in skiers and snowboarders, and after accounting for these factors, helmet use was a significant predictor of risk taking. The relationship between helmet use and risk taking was modest suggesting that the costs of increased risk taking is not likely to outweigh the protective benefits of a helmet.     

Early identification of children at risk of unintentional injury: A sensation seeking scale for children 2-5 years of age

Objective

Sensation seeking is a personality attribute associated with injury in school-age children, adolescents, and adults. This study aimed to develop and evaluate the psychometric properties of a questionnaire measure of sensation seeking for young children 2-5 years of age.

Methods

Items tapping aspects of sensation seeking (Novelty Seeking, Behavioral Intensity, Thrill Seeking) were developed, content validation was completed by child development experts, and 72 parents then completed the Sensation Seeking Scale for Young Children (SSSYC) twice (3 months intervening) to establish internal and test-retest reliabilities. To assess criterion validity, scores were related to children's preferences for high versus low sensation seeking activities, their free play behavior in an indoor playroom, and to children's history of unintentional injuries.

Results

Indices of internal reliability and test-retest reliability were good and questionnaire scores positively correlated with sensation seeking behaviors during free play, preferences for high versus low sensation seeking activities, and injury measures, providing support for criterion validity.

Conclusion

This initial evaluation of the SSSYC suggests that it is a psychometrically sound measure of sensation seeking. This scale may be useful for identifying high sensation seekers at young ages, providing the opportunity for early intervention to prevent unintentional injuries.     

Thrill and Adventure Seeking as a modifier of the relationship of perceived risk with risky driving among young drivers

Risky driving contributes to road trauma, a leading cause of mortality among young people. Health-relevant behaviour models suggest a negative relationship between risky driving and perceived risk of its outcomes. However, high sensation seekers may value the “thrill” of the risk, and positive associations between sensation seeking and risky driving have been observed. This is the first study to examine whether aspects of sensation seeking modify the relationship between perceived risk and risky driving. Young drivers in metropolitan Sydney and rural New South Wales [NSW] (n = 797) completed a survey relating to one of the four risky driving behaviours (speeding, drink-driving, driving while fatigued, and failing to wear a seatbelt). Results suggest that the Thrill and Adventure Seeking subscale of Zuckerman's (1994) Sensation Seeking Scale moderate the relationship of perceived risk with risky driving – indicating a negative relationship for low-scores, but not high-scorers, on the TAS subscale. Thus, road safety campaigns that emphasize the riskiness of a particular behaviour may be of limited benefit to thrill and adventure seekers.     

Sensation seeking, risky driving and behavioral adaptation

A study on the relationship between sensation seeking (SS) and risky driving, aggressive driving and behavioral adaptation is reported on. College students completed a questionnaire concerning their driving behavior and level of sensation seeking. Results indicated that high SS's were significantly more likely than low SS's to speed, not wear belts, drink frequently, drive after drinking, perceive a low risk of detection for impaired driving, and perceive that they could drink more beer before being impaired. High SS's were also more likely to report aggressive driving habits. High SS's were significantly more likely than low SS's to say that they would drive faster on highways and on wet roads and drive after drinking, if operating a vehicle equipped with anti-lock brakes. The results are consistent with previous research.     

Motor ability: protective or risk for school injuries?

The study aims were to assess the independent contribution of motor ability to the incidence of school injuries. The study included 2057 pupils in grades 3-6 of primary schools in a city in the north of Israel. A surveillance system gathered information about injuries that occurred on school premises or during school related activities and required medical treatment or caused limitation of usual activities. Children provided information on sensation seeking, self-appraisal of health, academic performance, physical activity, and dominant hand; anthropometric measurements and motor ability tests were performed.The incidence of injury events was 4% (95% CI=3.2-5.0). Injuries increased with increased balance and agility, but there were no differences according to reaction time. No other study variables were associated with the incidence of injuries. Our findings of an increase in the incidence of injuries with better motor ability may express differences in exposure to risk situations between children with better and poorer motor abilities.     

Rear seat safer: seating position, restraint use and injuries in children in traffic crashes in Victoria, Australia

Car crashes are a major cause of death and serious injury to children but most analyses of risk are based on US data. The Australian context is different in at least three ways: (1) the proportion of passenger-side airbags, a potential risk to children in front seats, is much lower; (2) unlike in the US, Australian airbags are designed to work with restrained passengers; (3) restraint use for children 0-12 years is high (>90%). Official data drawn from Victorian crash records (n=30,631) were used to calculate relative risks of death or serious injury for children (0-3 years, 4-7 years; 8-12 years) traveling in passenger cars during 1993-1998 and 1999-2004. Over 90% were reportedly wearing a restraint, and 20% were traveling in the front seat. For children under 4 years traveling in the front seat, the relative risk of death was twice as great as when traveling in the rear, and that of serious injury was 60% greater. The relative risk of death whilst traveling in the front seat was almost four times greater for children aged under 1 year. We suggest that serious consideration should be given to mandating rear seating for children, particularly those aged 4 and under.     

Factors related to seatbelt-wearing among rear-seat passengers in Malaysia

The benefit of wearing a rear seatbelt in reducing the risk of motor vehicle crash-related fatalities and injuries has been well documented in previous studies. Wearing a seatbelt not only reduces the risk of injury to rear-seat passengers, but also reduces the risk of injury to front-seat occupant who could be crushed by unbelted rear-seat passengers in a motor vehicle crash. Despite the benefits of wearing a rear seatbelt, its rate of use in Malaysia is generally low. The objective of this study was to identify factors that are associated with the wearing of a seatbelt among rear-seat passengers in Malaysia. Multinomial logistic regression analysis of the results of a questionnaire survey of 1651 rear-seat passengers revealed that rear-seat passengers who were younger, male, single and less educated and who had a perception of a low level of legislation enforcement, a lower risk-aversion and less driving experience (only for passengers who are also drivers) were less likely to wear a rear seatbelt. There was also a significant positive correlation between driver seatbelt and rear seatbelt-wearing behaviour. This implies that, in regards to seatbelt-wearing behaviour, drivers are more likely to adopt the same seatbelt-wearing behaviour when travelling as rear-seat passengers as they do when driving. These findings are crucial to the development of new interventions to increase the compliance rate of wearing a rear seatbelt.     

Psychosocial factors related to parental restraint of pre-school children in motor vehicles

While the use of safety restraints effectively reduces the risk of death or injury in accidents, many children still travel unrestrained in motor vehicles. Compulsory seat belt legislation in Australia increased rates of adult use dramatically, but did not have the same impact with children. In order to understand why levels of children's restraint use remain low, it is necessary to investigate parental factors related to use and non-use of restraints. This study assessed the rates of safety restraint use of parents and their pre-school children, and the sociodemographic, attitudinal and belief characteristics of parents which relate to children's restraint use, using the Health Belief Model as a basis for investigation. Restraint use for adults was substantially higher than for pre-school children. Children were more likely to be restrained if their parents were wearing seat belts, were married, were of high socioeconomic status, did not smoke, engaged in certain other preventive health behaviors on their children's behalf, traveled longer distances to pre-school and provided child seats for their children. In terms of the Health Belief Model, parents of restrained and unrestrained children differed in their evaluation of the "costs" and "benefits" of using restraints for their children, and in health locus of control. Parents of unrestrained children perceived the "costs" of restraint use, in terms of nuisance value, installation difficulty and financial cost, to be high. They were also less likely to believe that they could play a significant role in preventing injury to their children. Implications of these findings for safety restraint campaigns are discussed.     

Preventing vehicle crashes with trains at grade crossings: the risk seeker challenge

A formative evaluation for a communication campaign to decrease rail-automobile accidents was conducted with a survey of 891 randomly selected residents in Michigan, USA. The formative evaluation was theoretically grounded in the extended parallel process model. The results of the study suggest that the majority of respondents engage in safe driving behaviors around railways. However, 10-20% reported extremely risky behaviors such as trying to 'beat the train' (labeled 'risk seekers'). Further analyses revealed that the risk seekers were disproportionately male with strong sensation seeking tendencies to engage in new and novel experiences and to avoid boredom. The results suggest that high sensation seeking tendencies cause one to experience greater frustration and exhibit greater judgment distortions around rail crossings, which in turn, cause one to try and beat the train. Specific recommendations are given for campaign developers and limitations to the study are addressed.     

Injuries and use of protective equipment among college in-line skaters

In-line skating injuries and protective gear use were explored in a sample of college students (n = 217). A minority of respondents wore protective gear. One third of skaters had experienced at least one minor injury, and a smaller percentage had experienced fractures or head injuries. Most minor injuries occurred during the first 1–2 times skating, while more serious injuries tended to occur after at least 50 times on in-line skates. Psychosocial predictors of protective gear use were explored. Four major Health Belief Model constructs (perceived barriers to wearing gear, perceived susceptibility to injury, perceived severity of injury, and perceived benefits of wearing gear) were significant predictors of protective gear use. The Health Belief Model, tested using regression and structural equation modelling, predicted gear typically worn, frequency of gear use, and injuries received while in-line skating. Implications for increasing protective gear use are described.     

Child passenger safety and the immunity fallacy: Why what we are doing is not working

Motivating parents to take certain safety precautions when traveling with their children remains an elusive challenge for advocates, as caregiver naiveté contributes to poor parental participation in safety-seat checks, low booster-seat use, poor adherence to rear-seat positioning, and intermittent safety-belt use. Because of inherent human biases and unfortunate characteristics of vehicle travel, it is argued that most caregivers possess an immunity fallacy, or a reduced perception of risk for motor vehicle injury to their children. Consequently, traditionally designed child passenger safety campaigns, which are primarily informational, fail to have an impact on most parents. Rather, for maximum behavioral success, injury prevention messages must shock and surprise parents into paying attention to something they would normally dismiss as unimportant.     

The relationship between safety climate and injury rates across industries: the need to adjust for injury hazards

Previous studies have suggested that strong safety climates (shared perceptions of safe conducts at work) are associated with lower workplace-injury rates, but they rarely control for differences in industry hazards. Based on 33 companies, we assessed its association with injury rates using three rate based injury measures (claims per 100 employees, claims per 100,000 h worked, and claims per 1 million US dollars payroll), which were derived from workers' compensation injury claims. Linear regression models were used to test the predictability of safety climate on injury rates, followed by controlling for differences in hazard across industries gauged by national industry-specific injury rates. In the unadjusted model, company level safety climate were negatively and significantly associated with injury rates. However, all of the above associations were no longer apparent when controlling for the hazardousness of the specific industry. These findings may be due to over adjustment of hazard risk, or the overwhelming effects of industry specific hazards relative to safety climate effects that could not be differentiated with the statistical power in our study. Industry differences in hazard, conceptualized as one type of injury risk, however need to be considered when testing the association between safety climate and injury across different industries.     

An experimental test of risk compensation: between-subject versus within-subject analyses

This study examined parameters under which risk compensation in driving can occur following the use of safety belts. Risk compensation theories hypothesize that if individuals use safety belts, they will drive in a more risky manner than if they do not use safety belts due to an increased perception of safety. Although the existence of risk compensation in driving has been debated in the literature for many years, the current study was the first experimental analysis of this theory that permitted a controlled examination of both between-subject and within-subject effects. This study required subjects to drive a 5-hp. go-kart around an oval track either buckled or unbuckled in the first of two phases of 15 driving trials. After the first phase the safety condition was switched for half the subjects (i.e., the safety belt was removed from subjects using it or was used by subjects who previously did not use it). Dependent measures included latency for each lap, deviations from the prescribed lane, and perceived safety while driving. The amount of time it took for subjects to travel to the go-kart track and their safety belt use during that trip was also measured. Risk compensation theory was not supported in the between-subject analyses of the research data; however, some within-subject comparisons did demonstrate risk compensation. Subjects who switched from not using the safety belt to using it increased driving speed during the second phase significantly more than subjects who used the safety belt during both driving phases. The study suggested that the occurrence of risk compensation is dependent upon individuals being able to compare the sensations using a safety belt with those of not using a safety belt. Risk compensation did not manifest itself in between-subject studies because this comparison could not take place. The implications of this study to driving automobiles on multi-user roadways is discussed. Suggestions for research to further expand the knowledge about how and when risk compensation occurs are also provided.     

The characteristics of young pre-licensed drivers: Evidence from the New Zealand Drivers Study

Aim

The aim of this study was to identify demographic and behavioural factors associated with pre-licensed driving.

Method

A cohort comprising 3526 newly licensed drivers aged 15–24 years old from throughout New Zealand completed a questionnaire which sought information on pre-licensed driving behaviour and factors thought to be related to this.

Results

Almost half of the participants had driven on-road prior to passing their learner license theory test; 14% had driven more than 20 times; and 7.5% had driven more than 200 km. Multivariate logistic regression showed the results differed depending on the outcome examined. In general pre-licensed driving was significantly higher among males, among Māori, those living in a rural area, and those living in an area of high deprivation. Furthermore, those who drove pre-licensed were more likely to engage in other risky behaviours such as hazardous drinking and cannabis use, and have medium to high scores for sensation seeking and aggression/hostility.

Conclusion

The young people who were pre-licensed drivers displayed a range of demographic and behavioural characteristics that indicate they may be at higher crash risk than their peers who did not drive before licensing. Identifying those who drive before licensing and targeting road safety interventions towards this group may help reduce the high crash risk among novice drivers.     

The influence of anger,impulsivity, sensation seeking and driver attitudes on risky driving behaviour among post-graduate university students in Durban,South Africa

Introduction

Road traffic accidents (RTAs) constitute a serious global health risk, and evidence suggests that young drivers are significantly overrepresented among those injured or killed in RTAs. This study explores the role of anger, impulsivity, sensation seeking and driver attitudes as correlates for risky driving practices among drivers, drawing comparisons between age and gender.

Method

The study used a cross-sectional survey design, with a sample of 306 post-graduate university students from two universities in Durban, South Africa, who completed the self-administered questionnaire.

Results

The results indicate that drivers with higher driver anger, sensation seeking, urgency, and with a lack of premeditation and perseverance in daily activities were statistically more likely to report riskier driving acts. Males reported significantly more acts of risky driving behaviour (RDB) than females. Driver attitudes significantly predicted self-reported acts of RDB on most indicators. Older drivers (25 years and older) had safer driver attitudes and a lower sense of sensation seeking and urgency in life.

Conclusion

Interventions targeting young drivers, which focus on impeding the manifestation of anger, impulsivity and sensation seeking are recommended. Also, the empirical support for the attitude–behaviour hypothesis evidenced in this study vindicates the development or continuation of interventions that focus on this dynamic.     

Roles of safety climate and shift work on perceived injury risk: a multi-level analysis

This study evaluated the relationship between employees’ work shift (i.e., day shift versus night shift) and perceptions of injury risk, and how the relationship is affected by company level safety climate and injury frequency. The results showed that night shift workers perceived a higher level of injury risk compared to day shift workers. Both company level safety climate and injury frequency played critical roles in predicting individual perceived work injury risk. Perception of injury risk of night shift workers was significantly lower when they perceived high-level rather than low-level safety climate. However, this pattern was not noticeable for day shift workers. These findings highlighted the importance of considering company level factors when attempting to understand the differences between day shift and night shift work on an individual's perception of injury risk.     

Motorcycle protective clothing: protection from injury or just the weather?

Background

Apart from helmets, little is known about the effectiveness of motorcycle protective clothing in reducing injuries in crashes. The study aimed to quantify the association between usage of motorcycle clothing and injury in crashes.

Methods and findings

Cross-sectional analytic study. Crashed motorcyclists (n = 212, 71% of identified eligible cases) were recruited through hospitals and motorcycle repair services. Data was obtained through structured face-to-face interviews. The main outcome was hospitalization and motorcycle crash-related injury. Poisson regression was used to estimate relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence intervals for injury adjusting for potential confounders.

Results

Motorcyclists were significantly less likely to be admitted to hospital if they crashed wearing motorcycle jackets (RR = 0.79, 95% CI: 0.69–0.91), pants (RR = 0.49, 95% CI: 0.25–0.94), or gloves (RR = 0.41, 95% CI: 0.26–0.66). When garments included fitted body armour there was a significantly reduced risk of injury to the upper body (RR = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.66–0.89), hands and wrists (RR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.38–0.81), legs (RR = 0.60, 95% CI: 0.40–0.90), feet and ankles (RR = 0.54, 95% CI: 0.35–0.83). Non-motorcycle boots were also associated with a reduced risk of injury compared to shoes or joggers (RR = 0.46, 95% CI: 0.28–0.75). No association between use of body armour and risk of fracture injuries was detected. A substantial proportion of motorcycle designed gloves (25.7%), jackets (29.7%) and pants (28.1%) were assessed to have failed due to material damage in the crash.

Conclusions

Motorcycle protective clothing is associated with reduced risk and severity of crash related injury and hospitalization, particularly when fitted with body armour. The proportion of clothing items that failed under crash conditions indicates a need for improved quality control. While mandating usage of protective clothing is not recommended, consideration could be given to providing incentives for usage of protective clothing, such as tax exemptions for safety gear, health insurance premium reductions and rebates.