Citation

Ash IK, Edwards AL, Porter BE. Accid. Anal. Prev. 2014; 71C: 129-136.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University, 250 Mills Godwin Life Sciences Building, Norfolk, VA 23529, United States.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.aap.2014.05.011

PMID

24915200

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Primary enforcement laws have been shown to be effective methods for increasing seat belt use at the state level.

METHOD: This study investigates state differences in the effectiveness of primary enforcement laws by assessing whether a state's academic achievement, health ranking, economic prosperity, violent crime rates, government effectiveness, gender distribution, or proportion of rural roads moderate the relationship between those laws and seat belt compliance rates.

RESULTS: Aggregate state-level academic achievement, health ranking, government effectiveness, and proportion of rural roads uniquely moderated the seat belt use differences between primary and secondary enforcement states.

CONCLUSIONS: This evidence suggests that cultural, social, and demographic differences among regions may be important factors in explaining state-level differences in the effectiveness of primary enforcement of seat belt laws.

Language: en