The relationship between youth celebrations and road trauma in young people.

Parties and celebrations are an inherent part of becoming an adult. They provide young people with an opportunity to socialise with friends, meet people and to celebrate significant life events. However a combination of certain factors can increase the risk of injury to young people when they celebrate, including when they travel to, from and between parties. Effective safe celebrating strategies and initiatives require a broader perspective than simply targeting youth and their families. They must adopt a multi-strategic approach in order to foster positive safe celebrating relationships and messages that flow between individuals and their local schools, peers, community and culture. Youthsafe’s research has also revealed that due to their spontaneous, unsupervised and unplanned nature, young people are at greater risk of injury during minor celebrations. These are smaller, local or neighbourhood events and activities that often have a primary focus on alcohol and drug consumption and frequently occur in locations with limited safe transport options, such as parks, beaches, riversides and private homes. When combined with adolescents’ inexperience, vulnerability to peer influence and propensity for risk taking and sensation seeking behaviour, the injury risks associated with minor celebrations may not be understood or accepted, let alone adequately planned for and managed. (a) For the covering entry of this conference, please see ITRD abstract no. E217713