Prevention Works!

Predicting and Preventing Underage Drinking and Driving

Specific factors can help predict whether or not people under the age of 21 will drink and drive or will ride with a driver who has been drinking. Although the rates of alcohol-involved traffic accidents in the United States have declined in recent years, survey data suggest that as many as 40 percent of adolescents have driven under the influence (DUI) and that 62 percent have ridden with a drunk driver (RWDD).

DUI and RWDD are primarily predicted by expectations regarding the physical risks of driving after drinking, beliefs about the extent to which friends disapprove of drinking and driving, and beliefs about the chance of being caught and charged with DUI or RWDD.

Prevention efforts should focus on increasing awareness among young people about the physical risks of DUI and RWDD and about their vulnerability to these risks. Alternatives to drinking and driving should be promoted, as well as increased enforcement of underage drinking and driving laws. Public information campaigns are effective when they are accompanied by enforcement programs.

Some young people are at higher risk than others for DUI and RWDD. Males, European Americans, and Latinos, for example, drink more and are more likely to take driving risks and less likely to believe DUI is dangerous. Prevention programs should be targeted to such high-risk groups.

Another focus must be on changing beliefs. One approach is to educate youths and change their perceptions about the social acceptability of DUI and RWDD, providing feedback that includes disapproval of these behaviors. Such programs have shown promise in preventing underage smoking, drinking, and other drug use.

Source: Adapted by CSAP from "Predicting Underage Drinking and Driving Behaviors," Grube, J. and Voas, R., Addiction 91(12): 1843-57, 1996.

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