A Randomized Controlled Trial to Improve Teen Driving

This randomized controlled trial will evaluate an intervention that provides parents with objective feedback about their teen's driving as well as strategies to improve communication with their teen about driving. We will recruit 180 newly-licensed teen drivers and a parent or guardian. Our main hypotheses are that: parent-teen dyads who receive feedback will have reduced driving errors and increased safety behaviors than dyads with no feedback; and, parent-teen dyads who receive instruction on communication techniques will have improved quality and quantity of communication about driving than dyads not learning these techniques.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Motor Vehicle Driving
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: In-vehicle video feedback; Behavioral: Parent communication

Detailed Description

With a long-range goal of reducing crashes and related injuries among teen drivers, this project will assess the influence of a parent-focused intervention on teens' driving and safety behaviors. This randomized controlled trial will evaluate an intervention that integrates an in-vehicle video feedback system with parent-based communication techniques to improve teen driving. This will be the first rigorous evaluation of this technology, as well as the first to integrate a parent component. The in-vehicle video system records a video clip whenever an abrupt change in speed or steering direction is detected. These event-triggered video clips will be coded to identify safety-relevant events like driving errors and safety behaviors. A randomized group of parents will receive a weekly "driving report card" that summarizes driving errors, safety behaviors, and crashes or near-crashes recorded by the in-vehicle system. A second group of randomized parents will receive the report card plus training in communication strategies specifically designed to improve parent-teen communication about safe driving (based on Motivational Interviewing). Driving errors and safety behaviors will be compared to a control group that receives no feedback from the in-vehicle video system.

The specific aims of this proposed project are:

Specific Aim 1: Identify if giving parents feedback about their teen's driving performance and skills to better communicate with their teen driver increases the quality and quantity of parental involvement in teen driving.

Hypothesis: The intervention groups will report more frequent and higher-quality communication about safe driving than the control group.

Specific Aim 2: Identify if giving parents feedback about their teen's driving performance and skills to better communicate with their teen driver decreases the frequency of driving errors, unsafe driving behaviors, crashes, and near crashes.

Hypothesis: The intervention groups will have significantly reduced risky driving events (driving errors, crashes, and near crashes) and significantly increased safety behaviors (such as safety belt use and driving without distractions) than the control group.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 153
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Iowa
    • Des Moines, Iowa, United States, 50309
      • Blank Children's Hospital
    • Iowa City, Iowa, United States, 52242
      • University of Iowa

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 14 years to 17 years (Child)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Teen will receive Intermediate Driver's license in three months
• Teen has regular access to a car
• Can provide proof of insurance
• One legal guardian will also consent to participation

Exclusion Criteria:

• Either parent or teen is not an English speaker
• A sibling has already participated in the study

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Usual Care; Participants will have a passive in-vehicle video device installed in their car to measure driving errors and safety behaviors.
Experimental: In-vehicle video feedback; Participants will receive feedback from an in-vehicle video system. A light on the system will blink when a driving event has been recorded. Parents will receive a weekly report card of driving errors.	Behavioral: In-vehicle video feedback; An in-vehicle video system will record driving errors and safety behaviors. A light on the system will blink to let the participant know that a driving error has been recorded. Parents will receive a weekly report card.; Behavioral: Parent communication; Parents will receive instruction in teaching and effective communication about driving skills and driving safety. The intervention includes driving goals for teen drivers and parent communication strategies.
Experimental: In-vehicle video feedback, parent communication; Participants will receive feedback from an in-vehicle video system. A light on the system will blink when a driving event has been recorded. Parents will receive a weekly report card of driving errors. Parents will participate in an intervention that provides input on teaching and communicating about driving skills and safety behaviors.	Behavioral: Parent communication; Parents will receive instruction in teaching and effective communication about driving skills and driving safety. The intervention includes driving goals for teen drivers and parent communication strategies.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Driving errors by newly licensed teen drivers	An in-vehicle video system will be used to measure driving errors made by newly licensed teen drivers	6 months after licensure

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Safety behaviors of newly licensed teen drivers	An in-vehicle video system will be used to measure safety behaviors practiced by newly licensed teen drivers.	6 months post-licensure
Parent communication	Parents and teens will report on communication quality and quantity related to safe driving.	6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Iowa
• Collaborators: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Corinne Peek-Asa, PhD, University of Iowa; Principal Investigator: Daniel McGehee, PhD, University of Iowa

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 1, 2011
• Primary Completion (Actual): May 1, 2015
• Study Completion (Actual): May 1, 2018

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 18, 2012
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 18, 2012
• First Posted (Estimate): June 20, 2012

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): August 31, 2018
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 30, 2018
• Last Verified: August 1, 2018

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Road traffic safety
• Other Study ID Numbers: 065095; R01HD065095 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)