M.Ing. (Transportation Engineering) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Data on safety belt use were collected at two swimming pools over three consecutive summers. The impact of several variables upon safety belt use was examined. First, an Intervention Program (IP) was designed, comprised of Promotional, Reward, and Feedback components. Second, an Awareness/Education (AE) strategy was introduced to children enrolled in swim lessons. Third, belt use was examined before and after a mandatory safety belt use law (BUL) was enacted in Virginia. The moderating effects of the BUL were studied by implementing both the IP and the AE interventions during the pre- and post-BUL environments. Finally, some aspects of a behavioral prompt (i.e., a "Personal" vs. an "Impersonal" delivery method), and their relationship to safety belt use were examined. Major findings include, those individuals most influenced by the IP in the pre-BUL environment were those same individuals who were influenced by the BUL. Thus, while the IF did have an impact upon mean safety belt use levels in the post-BUL context, belt use increases over Baseline were not as dramatic as those observed in the pre-BUL environment. / Master of Science

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Social Sciences

The theory of risk compensation predicts that when individuals increase the practice of a safe behavior, they will also increase the practice of an unsafe behavior in order to maintain the same level of overall risk. In contrast, response generalization predicts that an increase in safe behavior will increase other safe behaviors in the same response class. The present study examined the effects of community-based feedback on the safety belt use of drivers in a small community in Southwest Virginia, while drivers on an intersecting highway served as a control group. An AB design was used to test the effects of the feedback on belt use. Turn signal use and right and left hand turn behaviors were also measured to study risk compensation vs. response generalization. Baseline measures were taken for 13 weeks at which point two feedback signs were erected in the community for the remaining 17 weeks of the study. The words "SAFETY BELT USE IN NEWPORT LAST WEEK" with the percentages of male and female driver safety belt use the previous week appeared on the signs. Feedback increased the safety belt use average in the community by 15.5 percentage points for males, and 9.7 percentage points for females over a 17 week period. Evidence for response generalization was shown by a 14.9 percentage point increase in turn signal use over the 17 weeks of the feedback intervention. / Master of Science

A large scale intervention program conducted by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles to increase safety belt use in eight communities (cities, towns, and counties) throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia was evaluated. The police or sheriff's department in each community conducted either one, two, or three repeated applications (waves) of public information/education programs. Each target community was matched with a non-treatment control community with a similar population. The overall project was very successful. The mean percent safety belt use for the eight target communities began at 52%, and significantly increased to 73% by the end of the project. The mean percent safety belt use for the eight control communities also began at 52%, and dropped insignificantly to 48% by the end of the project. To extend previous work on the relationship between intervention agents and intervention effectiveness, it was hypothesized that there would be a positive relationship between mean percent safety belt use increase and the agent-to-target ratios (the proportion of police officers or deputies participating in the program per number of citizens in the community), citation-to-target ratios (the proportion of citations or written warnings given during the program per number of citizens in the community), and promotional gimmick-to-target ratios (the proportion of promotional gimmicks given during the program per number of citizens in the community). Each of these ratios were significantly correlated with the percent safety belt use increase for the eight target communities. The terminal model for a stepwise regression procedure, which included the agent-to-target and citation-to-target ratios, yielded an R² of .83. A plan for institutionalizing safety belt programs that would reduce many of the problems associated with motivating large scale safety belt use is suggested, as well as suggestions for future research. / Master of Science

Working to increase seatbelt usage among teenagers in rural settings: The Drive Alive Program (Under the direction of Dr. Monica Swahn) Background: Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death in the United States. Teens are less likely to wear seatbelts than other age groups and more likely to be involved in a crash. The Drive Alive program was designed to improve seatbelt usage among teens. Purpose: This analysis aims to evaluate seatbelt use among teen drivers in a rural setting. Specifically, are there differences between males and females in terms of seatbelt use? Are drivers more likely to wear their seatbelts than passengers? Methods: Data was gathered from observational surveys (N= 3,743). Surveys were gathered by trained observers in South Georgia from 2010-2011. Records were analyzed in SPSS using three categories: occupant, sex, and belt use. The null hypotheses for this study are: 1) there is no significant difference between male and female drivers or passengers in seatbelt usage; and, 2) there is no significant difference between driver and passenger seatbelt usage. Results: Descriptive analyses were computed to determine average seatbelt use across all occupants. Chi Square for Independence tests were computed to determine differences between drivers and passengers and males and females. Females were significantly more likely than males to wear their seatbelt (Females, 70%; Males, 59%). There were no significant differences in seatbelt use for drivers and their passengers. Conclusions: Results for females being more likely to wear seatbelts is consistent with the literature. Future research might include comparison between schools with different versions of the program. Programs to increase seatbelt usage among teens should include parents, education, enforcement, teen-led activities, and partnership with educators and community organizations. Save the lives of young drivers by modeling seatbelt wearing, appropriately implementing comprehensive seatbelt use improvement programs, and enforcing the law. These simple measures will improve seatbelt use and reduce roadway fatalities.

Studies show that seat belt use by law enforcement officers is estimated to be at 50%, well below the national average. The purpose of this study was to explore what may be leading to reduced seat belt use by law enforcement patrol officers while also determining if different types of policies effect the level of seat belt usage by this population. The theoretical framework used in this study was Shafritz, Ott and Jang's theory of organizational culture and change. This quantitative study was conducted using a casual, quasi-experimental design; the research questions focused on understanding what phenomena may be occurring resulting in the lower seat belts by U.S. police patrol officers and what types of policies are resulting in increased seat belt usage by this population. Participants in this research consisted of 38 officers from police departments with patrol divisions. These departments were selected from the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. The research indicated that officers may have false perceptions in regard to seat belt use. Trainings should be delivered to debunk some of these myths while also providing practical seat belt use training. The results of this study can be used to develop better policies to increase seat belt usage by law enforcement officers, which would likely reduce the injuries and death as a result of auto accidents. Decreased injuries and deaths of law enforcement officers would lead to decreased insurance and workers' compensation claims that would reduce the tax and financial burden faced by citizens and jurisdictions.

Thesis (M. Soc. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1985.

Diss. (sammanfattning) Umeå : Umeå universitet, 2007. / Härtill 4 uppsatser.

Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1985. / Also available in print.