Characteristics and conditions of teenage safety belt use

Safety belt use was observed for 7,384 vehicle occupants estimated as 15-19 years old in four states - Texas, Virginia, Idaho, and Mississippi. Age and other pertinent information was obtained from 2,330 teen occupants. Belt use ranged from 19.5% in Yazoo City, Mississippi to 57.6% in Charlottesville, Virginia. Teens more likely to be belted were: drivers, females, occupants of passenger cars, younger, had taken driver education, and lived in larger cities. Very few teens wore safety belts in the back seat. They were more likely to buckle up on the highway, and less likely to buckle up for recreational and short, local trips. Teen passengers tended to make their restraint decision on a conditional basis more often than teen drivers. Reasons most often given for lack of use included discomfort and lack of habit. Many teens, in focus group discussions, expressed doubts about the effectiveness of safety belts in a crash. For most teens in the discussion groups, parental influence seemed to be a greater influence on belt wearing behavior than peer pressure. According to teens in the focus groups conducted in this study, effective approaches for improving belt use among teens should portray realistic consequences of not wearing safety belts. Habitual belt use can be promoted with parental influence at an early age, and with enforced primary use laws.