Seat belt and child restraint usage among car occupants from non-english speaking backgrounds : comparisons of Anglo, Italo, Lebanese and Vietnamese communities.

The occupant restraint use of three non-English speaking background (NESB) communities in Sydney, NSW, were observed, along with the occupant restraint use of English speaking background (ESB) occupants at the same sites. The research found that there were statistically significant differences in restraint wearing rates between the ESB and NESB communities observed. These differences were primarily amongst child passengers in the rear seat. The research also found that non-use of restraints was not due to there being more occupants than restraints available. The age, sex, day of week, number of occupants in the vehicle, type of restraint and whether or not the restraint was used correctly were also examined. Recommendations for future research in this area are also made.