Attitudes Toward Seat Belt Use Among Urban & Rural Teens

Abstract

Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death among 15 to 20 year-olds in the United States. In Missouri, young drivers are involved in a disproportionate number of fatal traffic crashes. Recent surveys show that just 58 percent of teen drivers in Missouri regularly wear seat belts. This is significant, because nearly 70 percent of those who die in traffic crashes in Missouri are not wearing their seat belt. Nationally, there is a large variation in seat belt use among states. In 2005, 60.8 percent of drivers in Mississippi wore seat belts, the lowest rate in the nation, compared to a high of 95.3 percent in Hawaii. Missouri's overall seat belt usage rate in 2005 was 77.4 percent.