Citation

Girasek DC, Gielen AC. Health Educ. Behav. 2003; 30(3): 287-304.

Affiliation

Preventive Medicine & Biometrics, Uniformed Services University, Bethesda, Maryland 20814, USA. Dgirasek@usuhs.mil

Copyright

(Copyright © 2003, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1090198103030003005

PMID

19731497

Abstract

This article is based on a random digit dialed telephone survey in which adults were asked to name effective strategies for preventing deaths due to motor vehicle crashes, falls, drowning, fires/burns, and poisoning. A majority of the 943 respondents could name prevention techniques, although they were least likely to do so for fatal falls. Participants at highest risk for not naming a countermeasure were those with fewer years of education. The strategy cited most often for preventing deaths due to falls, poisoning, and drowning was safety education. These findings suggest that more advantaged members of the public feel they know how to prevent America's leading causes of injury death. They may not fully appreciate, however, the options of creating health-promoting environments and safer products. This work makes it very clear that people with less education also need to be exposed to the breadth of effective injury countermeasures.

Language: en