The relationship between attentional difficulties at age 13 and later adverse driving outcomes were examined in this paper. Data were gathered over the course of a 21-year longitudinal study of a birth cohort of 1,265 children in New Zealand. Data collected included: (1) parent and teacher report measures of attentional difficulties at age 13; (2) measures of driving behavior, including involvement in an accident, drinking and driving and traffic violations at ages 18-21; and (3) measures of a range of potentially confounding individual, sociofamilial and driving-related factors. Results indicate that young people with high levels of attentional difficulties were at greater risk of involvement in a motor vehicle accident, drinking and driving, and traffic violations. These associations can be largely explained by the personal characteristics and driving experience of young people with attentional difficulties. Young people with attentional difficulties were at increased risk of an injury accident, driving without a license and other traffic violations, even after adjustment for the effects of confounding factors.
Abstract