Trajectories and Outcomes of Adolescents that Ride With an Impaired Driver/Drive While Impaired

Federico E Vaca; Kaigang Li; Denise L Haynie; Xiang Gao; Deepa R Camenga; James Dziura; Barbara C Banz; Leslie A Curry; Linda Mayes; Niyousha Hosseinichimeh; Rod MacDonald; Ronald J Iannotti; Bruce Simons-Morton

doi:10.1016/j.jth.2021.101303

Trajectories and Outcomes of Adolescents that Ride With an Impaired Driver/Drive While Impaired

J Transp Health. 2022 Mar:24:101303. doi: 10.1016/j.jth.2021.101303. Epub 2022 Jan 3.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Emergency Medicine, Developmental Neurocognitive Driving Simulation Research Center (DrivSim Lab), Yale University School of Medicine.
² Department of Health & Exercise Science, Colorado State University.
³ Colorado School of Public Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development.
⁴ Division of Intramural Population Health Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development.
⁵ Yale School of Public Health.
⁶ Yale Child Study Center.
⁷ Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech.
⁸ School of Integrated Sciences, James Madison University.
⁹ The CDM Group, Inc.

Abstract

Introduction: For young drivers, independent transportation has been noted to offer them opportunities that can be beneficial as they enter early adulthood. However, those that choose to engage in riding with an impaired driver (RWI) and drive while impaired (DWI) over time can face negative consequences reducing such opportunities. This study examined the prospective association of identified longitudinal trajectory classes among adolescents that RWI and DWI with their later health, education, and employment in emerging adulthood.

Methods: We analyzed all seven annual assessments (Waves, W1-W7) of the NEXT Generation Health Study, a nationally representative longitudinal study starting with 10^th grade (2009-2010 school year). Using all seven waves, trajectory classes were identified by latent class analysis with RWI (last 12 months) and DWI (last 30 days) dichotomized as ≥once = 1 vs. none = 0.

Results: Four RWI trajectories and four DWI trajectories were identified: abstainer, escalator, decliner, and persister. For RWI and DWI trajectories respectively, 45.0% (N=647) and 76.2% (N=1,657) were abstainers, 15.6% (N=226) and 14.2% (N=337) were escalators, 25.0% (N=352) and 5.4% (N=99) were decliners, and 14.4% (N=197) and 3.8% (N=83) persisters. RWI trajectories were associated with W7 health status (χ²=13,20, p<.01) and education attainment (χ²=18.37, p<.01). Adolescent RWI abstainers reported better later health status than RWI escalators, decliners, and persisters; and decliners reported less favorable later education attainment than abstainers, escalators, and persisters. DWI trajectories showed no association with health status, education attainment, or employment.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest the importance of later health outcomes of adolescent RWI. The mixed findings point to the need for more detailed understanding of contextual and time-dependent trajectory outcomes among adolescents engaging in RWI and DWI.

Keywords: driving while impaired; education attainment; employment; health status; riding with an impaired driver; trajectory classes.

Abstract

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