The objective of this study was to search for and quantify the importance of socioeconomic inequality in seat belt use in young Belgians (15-24 years old). Using the data of the National Health Survey of Belgium (1997), socioeconomic indicators were constructed combining characteristics of the individual and the household to which s/he `belongs' (equivalent household income, employment, poverty, subjective poverty, and socioeconomic insecurity) and the corresponding concentration curves and indices were calculated. Significant differences were found in seat belt use related to young people's socioeconomic status. The failure to buckle up was concentrated most heavily in the least favoured socioeconomic groups. Such inequality was a constant finding, although its magnitude varied according to the socioeconomic indicator used, going from -0.142 for the variable `occupational category of the household' to -0.028 for the variable `poverty'. This finding of true socioeconomic inequality in the use of seat belts by 15-24 year olds should prompt special vigilance in health promotion approaches aimed at changing behaviour. It also underlines the importance of being attentive to the socioeconomic indicators that are chosen to quantify such inequality in intra- and inter-country comparisons. (Author/publisher)
Abstract