Problem Behaviour Theory (PBT) and Impaired Driving: Results from the Ontario Student Drug and Health Survey (OSDUHS)
Author(s): Seeley, Vingilis, Wickens, Boak, Mann
Slidedeck Presentation Only (no paper submitted):
Abstract:
Problem Behaviour Theory (PBT) has been used to explain a range of problem behaviours, including impaired driving (E.g., Bingham & Shope 2004; Vingilis & Adlaf 1990). According to PBT, adolescent problem behaviours co-occur and are hypothesized to have common causes and influences (Duncan et al. 2000; Jessor 1987, 1991). Experimentation and social identity can develop to reflect prosocial, conventional roles or antisocial, unconventional, deviant roles. Those who identify with unconventional roles are more likely to engage in a variety of risky and deviant behaviours (Bingham and Shope 2004; Eccles et al. 2003; Stone et al. 2008). Thus, according to PBT, we would expect to find interrelatedness between impaired driving measures and other delinquency activities. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship of impaired driving and other delinquencies in a provincially representative sample of high school students living in Ontario. The data used in the study were derived from the 2015 cycle of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health's OSDUHS, a stratified (region and school type), 2-stage (school, class) cluster sample design, representative of Ontario students in grades 7 through 12. Post-stratification weights are calculated for the sex-by-grade distributions within each regional stratum separately to ensure that the respondents in each region were proportionate to the population structure. Sample selected are students 16 years and older with a G2 licence or higher in at least grade 10. Included measures: delinquency measures (11-items on frequency of school suspension and engaging in violent and non-violent delinquent behaviours during the past year); substance use measures (standard quantity and frequency questions for alcohol, cannabis (Q-F)); impaired driving-related outcomes (driving after drinking, driving after cannabis use) and socio-demographics (gender, age). For example, of the 530 participants, a significantly higher proportion of students with school suspensions (17.9%) than with no suspensions (5.9%) reported driving a vehicle within an hour of drinking 2 or more drinks of alcohol (X2 =16.27, p = .000). Similarly, a significantly higher proportion of students with school suspensions (34.0%) than with no suspensions (14.2%) reported driving a vehicle within an hour of using marijuana or hashish (X2 =22.84, p = .000). A significantly higher proportion of students who reported at least one physical fight on school property in the last 12 months (17.6%) than with no reported fights (7.4%) reported driving a vehicle within an hour of drinking 2 or more drinks of alcohol (X2 =58.91, p = .000), while significantly higher proportion of students who reported at least one physical fight on school property in the last 12 months (50.0%) than with no reported fights (16.1%) reported driving a vehicle within an hour of using marijuana or hashish (X2 =65.23, p = .000). This study shows an association with impaired driving and a range of delinquent behaviours. Additionally, logistic regressions will be presented adjusting for demographic and substance use.