In 1997, Michigan became the first jurisdiction in the world to enact a graduated licensing programme that requires parental certification of extended supervised practice. The primary focus of the study presented in this scientific poster is on the response of the parents or other adults responsible for the driving supervision to the graduated licensing programme. For one week in July 1998 parent surveys were collected from parents or other responsible adults bringing young drivers to licensing offices for Level 2 licensure. This is the first level at which learners are allowed to drive unsupervised, with restrictions on late night driving, mandated safety belt use, and zero tolerance for blood alcohol content (BAC). The young applicant must also have completed a second segment of driver education and have no violation convictions or license suspensions during the 90-day period immediately prior to Level 2 licensure. It is at this point that the parent must provide certification that at least 50 hours of supervised practice have been provided, at least 10 hours of which must be at night. A total of 814 usable surveys were collected. The concerns expressed by legislators and others about requiring extensive parental involvement in young driver's acquisition of initial driving skill were not confirmed by the findings of the study. Most parents were not all-critical of the requirement, but rather were strongly positive about both the required supervised practice and the new programme generally.
Abstract