Car crashes are the number one killer of teens claiming an average of 3,000 young lives annually. Novice teen drivers, unlike their more experienced adult counterparts, are four times more likely to be involved in a fatal motor vehicle crash. There is good news, however, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 2011 young driver-related fatalities declined 4.6% and crashes fell 5.5%, continuing the gains made over the past decade. Researchers agree that Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) laws, now in place in all fifty states, have been instrumental in facilitating crash reductions ranging from 20 to 40%. Researchers also point to the critical role parents play in helping teens survive their most dangerous driving years. Children literally begin learning to drive the minute their parents bring them home from the hospital. As they travel in cars driven by their parents, children develop perceptions about driving, including what it means to share the road and respect and obey traffic laws. Numerous studies, some of which include the use of in-car cameras that monitor both teen and parent driving, find that “people drive in ways similar to their parents” Parents’ expectations also factor into how a teen drives. Parents who set, monitor and enforce safe driving practices have teens who are less likely to crash and violate the law. Involved parents, who set high expectations as well as nurture their young drivers, will see their children more likely to drive safely at far greater rates than teens with permissive or uninvolved parents. Which raises the questions: Do parents recognize the critical role they play in shaping their teens’ driving behaviour? Do they know the risks for their teens? Are they optimising their states’ Graduated Driving Licensing program or, for that matter, know what it is and how it works? Are they fully equipped to assume the role of teacher and coach, since they're likely to be their teens’ primary provider of in-car training? Surveys of parents across the country report a mixed bag of responses to these and other questions. Clearly, parents want to do what is best for their teens, but when it comes to recognizing what they should be most concerned about, car crashes don't always factor into the equation. Additionally, many parents look at their teens’ licensure as an opportunity to relinquish the long-held task of shuttling their children to activities. This new found freedom for both parent and teen does have its advantages, but it can come with a price if the parent fails to remain actively engaged throughout the teen’s formative driving years. At the same time, many parents want help supporting their novice driver and look to licensing and other agencies for information and advice. The proliferation of resources, both in print and online, speaks not only to the interest in the topic, but the recognition that parents, mentors and guardians want and need assistance. But are these tools helpful or effective? This publication follows on the heels of Curbing Teen Driver Crashes: An In-Depth Look at State Initiatives published October 2012 with funding from State Farm. It attempts to answer the questions and issues described above by delving deeper into parental participation in teen driving. This latest instalment discusses not only what parents need to know to reduce their teens’ crash risk, but the opportunities for and challenges of engaging them in the process. It also leverages the findings of a previously conducted Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) survey, along with new research, to examine the current state of the practice, identifies what elements are essential for building a good parent program, and makes recommendations for continued study that will assist states and organizations working to advance teen driver safety. This report was compiled with the guidance of an expert panel to help state highway safety officials, advocates and others working in the teen driving arena continue to move the needle in the right direction. It is by no means all-inclusive; there are many parent programs that merit highlighting, but are not included due to space limitations. The ones chosen for discussion in this report represent new, cutting edge and/or model parent engagement programs as well as one-of-a-kind initiatives that are showing or expected to show through data analysis and/or peer reviewed research promising results. (Some of the activities were evaluated through an analysis of crash data and parent surveys, while others have been or are being evaluated through peer review.) (Author/publisher)
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