A Community Assessment of Drinking and Driving Predictors: Alcohol Outlets and Socioeconomic Factors

The purpose of the study was to examine drinking and driving behaviors among different socioeconomic status neighborhoods. This study included a telephone survey that measured demographics, characteristics of the environment, and self-report alcohol use. In addition to the telephone survey, the researcher examined archival data such as alcohol-related traffic crash reports. Geographical information systems (GIS) programming was used to graphically plot alcohol-related traffic crash locations simultaneously with the locations of alcohol outlets. A review of the literature on drinking and driving was inconsistent; therefore, the researcher hypotheses were chosen to clear up some of these contradictions. The hypothesis that alcohol outlets would be located near low-income, minority neighborhoods was not supported; however, individuals who resided in low-income neighborhoods were more likely to report drinking and driving. The hypothesis testing the likelihood that younger drivers were more likely to drink and drive as compared to older drivers was supported. Interestingly, living near alcohol outlets did not significantly predict drinking and driving. Researchers can now develop intervention programs that target drinking and driving for young drivers and for individuals residing in low-income neighborhoods.