Informal parental traffic training and children's traffic accidents

The aims of the present study were (a) to assess the relationship between informal traffic training by parents and their children's involvement in traffic accidents and (b) to identify factors contributing to this relationship. The first two studies involved questionnaires on informal parental traffic education, the child's exposure to traffic and traffic-related accidents. Both studies showed that rate of accidents increased with training, particularly for outdoor training. An accident analysis indicated that most accidents involved the use of the bicycle, and that the major part of the accidents resulted in light injuries and occurred when the child was practicing the act of manoeuvring the bicycle. An interview study with 10 preschool teachers identified two quite disparate traffic education goals: emphasis on cautiousness versus emphasis on independence. The major implications of the study are that efforts in traffic training should give more emphasis to bicycle use and should be planned and carried out in cooperation with the parents.