Association Between RidingWith an Impaired Driver and Driving While Impaired

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between driving while alcohol/ drug impaired (DWI) and the timing and amount of exposure to others’ alcohol/drug-impaired driving (riding while impaired [RWI]) and driving licensure timing among teenage drivers. METHODS: The data were from waves 1, 2, and 3 (W1, W2, and W3, respectively) of the NEXT Generation Study, with longitudinal assessment of a nationally representative sample of 10th graders starting in 2009–2010. Multivariate logistic regression was used for the analyses. RESULTS: Teenagers exposed to RWI at W1 (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 21.12, P , .001), W2 (AOR = 19.97, P , .001), and W3 (AOR = 30.52, P , .001) were substantially more likely to DWI compared with those reporting never RWI. Those who reported RWI at 1 wave (AOR = 10.89, P , .001), 2 waves (AOR = 34.34, P , .001), and all 3 waves (AOR = 127.43, P , .001) were more likely to DWI compared with those who never RWI. Teenagers who reported driving licensure at W1 were more likely to DWI compared with those who were licensed at W3 (AOR = 1.83, P, .05). CONCLUSIONS: The experience of riding in a vehicle with an impaired driver increased the likelihood of future DWI among teenagers after licensure. There was a strong, positive dose-response association between RWI and DWI. Early licensure was an independent risk factor for DWI. The findings suggest that RWI and early licensure could be important prevention targets. Pediatrics 2014;133:620–626 AUTHORS: Kaigang Li, PhD,a Bruce G. Simons-Morton, EdD, MPH,a Federico E. Vaca, MD, MPH,b and Ralph Hingson, ScD, MPHc aHealth Behavior Branch, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, Maryland; bDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut; and cEpidemiology and Prevention Research Division, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, Maryland