It is well-known that it is important for parents of teenagers to keep a close eye on their children’s driving conduct. Another thing that it can be very important for such parents to be vigilant about is who they allow their teenage child to ride in the car with. This is underscored in a recent study.
The study indicates that intoxicated driving has something of a contagious quality for young people. Specifically, the study found that teenage drivers are more likely to engage in drunk driving if they have ridden in a car that was being operated by someone under the influence.
The study’s findings came from a review of survey data that was taken of around 2,500 American high school students during their sophomore through senior years. The study found that students had a 21-fold greater chance of have driven while under the influence by the time they were in 12th grade if they had ridden in a car that was being driven by an intoxicated individual around the time they were in 10th grade. The study further found that students had a 127-fold greater chance of having engaged in drunk driving by their senior year if they rode in a car driven by an intoxicated individual in all three of their 10th-12th grade years.
What are your thoughts on this study’s results? Given these results, what sorts of actions do you think should be taken to try to reduce the occurrence of drunk driving among teenagers?
Drunk driving by teenagers, or drivers of any age, can lead to individuals getting seriously hurt. Victims of drunk driving accidents who have questions regarding what their rights are should consider taking their questions to an attorney.
Source: The Huffington Post, “Teens More Likely To Drive Drunk After Riding With Intoxicated Drivers: Study,” Cari Nierenberg, March 17, 2014
