Bad drivers: identification of a target group for alcohol-related prevention and early intervention

Individuals arrested for driving while intoxicated (DWI) have been targeted for preventive intervention of alcohol-related problems. However, high rates of diagnosed alcoholism among DWI arrestees suggest a need to identify individuals at risk earlier in the developmental process. The present study investigates one such group, namely male "bad drivers" with a history of multiple nonalcohol-related driving convictions. Over 11% of a sample of 254 men identified as bad drivers during an index year received an initial DWI arrest over a subsequent 3-year follow-up period. This was over five times greater than the rate of initial DWI arrest among a representative sample of men from the general driving population over the same time period. The same high rate of subsequent DWI arrest among drivers having four or more driving offenses within the index year was replicated in a 1% probability sample of over 39,000 drivers from the general driving population. Those individuals from the original group of 254 bad drivers who received an initial DWI had significantly higher levels of drinking at the time of their original identification as bad drivers than did those who did not receive a DWI. The results were discussed in terms of early identification and preventive interventions within the population of bad drivers.