Motorists' Opinions about Drink-Driving and the Law: A Survey
| Published date | 01 July 1998 |
| Author | Colin Baker,Alun Waddon |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X9807100303 |
| Date | 01 July 1998 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
ALUN WADDON
COLIN BAKER
School of Psychology, University of Wales Bangor
MOTORISTS' OPINIONS ABOUT
DRINK-DRIVING AND THE LAW:
ASURVEY
Over 1,000 motorists completed a survey questionnaire in late 1997
relating to a wide variety
of
issues concerned with the policing
of
road
traffic. Respondents were shown to have come from all over the British
Isles and to be representative
of
both genders and all age-groups.
Drivers were asked about their own behaviour in a variety
of
settings, about their opinions regarding the law and its application, and
about their own priorities
for
future action.
Introduction
Knowledge of motorists' opinions, in our view, should be seen as an
important prerequisite, together with detailed analysis of road accident
statistics, for the effective policing of driver behaviour. While the
ultimate aim of both kinds of research is to create the conditions in
which road travel becomes as safe as possible, the study reported in this
article investigates the ways in which drivers think about the issue of
drink-driving and random breath-testing. We take as our starting point,
then, the conviction that those who are responsible for the formulation
of road traffic legislation as well as those who are responsible for its
enforcement should be informed by the priorities, beliefs and attitudes
of road-users. While figures such as those contained in the yearly Road
Accidents in Great Britain are generally regarded as regularly making a
major contribution to the understanding of personal-injury traffic
accidents, it seems to us that knowledge of what drivers have to say, in
a confidential questionnaire, about their own attitudes and behaviour
can also
playa
part in making road traffic legislation more likely to be
successful and, thus, in making our roads safer.
Masurel (1997) conducted detailed research into drinking and
driving using coroners' data, breath-test data following personal-injury
accidents and breath-test data following moving traffic offences, road
accidents, or suspicion of alcohol use. She was able to show that the fall
which occurred in numbers of road accidents involving illegal alcohol
use between 1986 and 1993 appeared to have ceased by 1995and 1996.
This, of course, is a very important finding, but the present study
/98
The Police Journal July /998
To continue reading
Request your trial