The effectiveness of a peer lead smart driving campaign on high school students' driving habits

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among teenagers. In 2007, 48 youth between the ages of 15 years and 19 years died in traffic crashes and almost 4,780 were injured in Minnesota. Of those killed, only 42.8% of teens were wearing their seat belt. The Drive Smart Challenge is a 4-week peer lead safety campaign with the goal to increase safe driving habits for high school age students.

The 4-week challenge begins with a seat belt check of teen drivers and their front seat passengers at the school's parking lot. Each school's student-leadership group then selected and implemented at least eight Smart Driving interventions from a manual they are provided. A post seat belt check is conducted at the conclusion of the challenge.

In 2008, 11 schools agreed to participate in the challenge. More than 21,000 students were exposed to the safe driving messages through public address announcements, posters, mock car crashes, mothers against drunk driving car demonstrations, parent contracts, guest speakers, student developed videos, and web sites. In the end, all the schools documented an increase in seat belt use. The most improved school documented a 15% increase.

The Drive Smart Challenge is an effective way to get teens involved in a safe driving campaign. Further studies should be done to determine how often teen drivers and their passengers need to be exposed to the messages of the Drive Smart Challenge in order for optimal effectiveness in behavior and attitude change.