Mindfulness, crashes, and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the United States

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the association between individual-level mindfulness and a range of risky driving behaviors among U.S. adolescents. Methods: We conducted a survey of a nationally representative sample of 16–19-year-olds, recruited from the National Opinion Research...

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Main Authors: Johnathon P. Ehsani, Michelle Duren, Sjaan Koppel, Federico Vaca, Andrew Hellinger, Brydon Grant, Ahmed Sabit, Gayane Yenokyan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-11-01
Series:Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590198224002343
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author Johnathon P. Ehsani
Michelle Duren
Sjaan Koppel
Federico Vaca
Andrew Hellinger
Brydon Grant
Ahmed Sabit
Gayane Yenokyan
author_facet Johnathon P. Ehsani
Michelle Duren
Sjaan Koppel
Federico Vaca
Andrew Hellinger
Brydon Grant
Ahmed Sabit
Gayane Yenokyan
author_sort Johnathon P. Ehsani
collection DOAJ
description Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the association between individual-level mindfulness and a range of risky driving behaviors among U.S. adolescents. Methods: We conducted a survey of a nationally representative sample of 16–19-year-olds, recruited from the National Opinion Research Center AmeriSpeak panel, a probability-based sample. Participants completed the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale. Risky driving measures were adapted from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Spline regression analysis was performed to identify the threshold where mindfulness scores significantly changed driving behaviors. Results: After adjusting for age, gender, and race, adolescents reporting higher mindfulness scores were significantly less likely to engage on all risky driving behaviors and significantly less likely to have been involved in a crash. Spline regression analysis indicated that a mindfulness score of 75 corresponded to the minimum marginal probability change averaged across the outcomes of interest. Discussion: This paper describes a previously unknown association between mindfulness and risky driving in a vulnerable population which is at higher risk of injury and death from motor vehicle crashes. The strength of the associations across a range of behaviors suggests mindfulness could be a general protective factor for adolescents’ driving behaviors and suggests that mindfulness training may be a promising safety intervention for adolescents. A mindfulness score of 75 could be a potential target for mindfulness training interventions aiming to reduce risky driving behaviors and crashes among teenage drivers.Abbreviations: ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; CI, Confidence Interval; MAAS, Mindful Attention Awareness Scale; NORC, University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center; YRBS, Youth Risk Behavior Survey.
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spelling doaj-art-9ea4c5768c29469aab8ca07bd7418ebf2024-12-18T08:51:52ZengElsevierTransportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives2590-19822024-11-0128101248Mindfulness, crashes, and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the United StatesJohnathon P. Ehsani0Michelle Duren1Sjaan Koppel2Federico Vaca3Andrew Hellinger4Brydon Grant5Ahmed Sabit6Gayane Yenokyan7Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, 624 N. Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21205, United States; Corresponding author at: 624 N. Broadway, Hampton House 555, Baltimore, MD, 21205.Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, 624 N. Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21205, United StatesMonash University Accident Research Centre, 21 Alliance Ln., Clayton VIC 3168, AustraliaUniversity of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, 1001 Health Sciences Rd, Irvine, CA 92617, United StatesJohns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, 624 N. Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21205, United StatesDepartment of Epidemiology and Environmental Medicine, 270 Farber Hall, Buffalo, NY 14214-8001, United States; Bahai Institute for Higher Education, IranJohns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Biostatistics, 615 N. Wolfe St. Baltimore, MD 21205, United StatesJohns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Biostatistics, 615 N. Wolfe St. Baltimore, MD 21205, United StatesPurpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the association between individual-level mindfulness and a range of risky driving behaviors among U.S. adolescents. Methods: We conducted a survey of a nationally representative sample of 16–19-year-olds, recruited from the National Opinion Research Center AmeriSpeak panel, a probability-based sample. Participants completed the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale. Risky driving measures were adapted from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Spline regression analysis was performed to identify the threshold where mindfulness scores significantly changed driving behaviors. Results: After adjusting for age, gender, and race, adolescents reporting higher mindfulness scores were significantly less likely to engage on all risky driving behaviors and significantly less likely to have been involved in a crash. Spline regression analysis indicated that a mindfulness score of 75 corresponded to the minimum marginal probability change averaged across the outcomes of interest. Discussion: This paper describes a previously unknown association between mindfulness and risky driving in a vulnerable population which is at higher risk of injury and death from motor vehicle crashes. The strength of the associations across a range of behaviors suggests mindfulness could be a general protective factor for adolescents’ driving behaviors and suggests that mindfulness training may be a promising safety intervention for adolescents. A mindfulness score of 75 could be a potential target for mindfulness training interventions aiming to reduce risky driving behaviors and crashes among teenage drivers.Abbreviations: ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; CI, Confidence Interval; MAAS, Mindful Attention Awareness Scale; NORC, University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center; YRBS, Youth Risk Behavior Survey.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590198224002343MindfulnessRisky drivingYoung driverTeen driverCrashes
spellingShingle Johnathon P. Ehsani
Michelle Duren
Sjaan Koppel
Federico Vaca
Andrew Hellinger
Brydon Grant
Ahmed Sabit
Gayane Yenokyan
Mindfulness, crashes, and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the United States
Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives
Mindfulness
Risky driving
Young driver
Teen driver
Crashes
title Mindfulness, crashes, and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the United States
title_full Mindfulness, crashes, and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the United States
title_fullStr Mindfulness, crashes, and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the United States
title_full_unstemmed Mindfulness, crashes, and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the United States
title_short Mindfulness, crashes, and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the United States
title_sort mindfulness crashes and risky driving behaviors among adolescents and young adults in the united states
topic Mindfulness
Risky driving
Young driver
Teen driver
Crashes
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590198224002343
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