Attitudinal and Social Factors Associated with Use of Seat Belts

To identify attitudes related to use of automobile seat belts which would be relevant to educational campaigns to increase use, three attitude scales were constructed. These were found to differ significantly between "high use" drivers, "low use" drivers, and those without seat belts. Correlation of these scales with use indicated that men found the "Seat belts are good equipment" theme the most relevant to whether to use seat belts; that women found the "Seat belts are safe to use" theme relevant, while men did not; and that mothers with children at home and a car to drive found the "Seat belts give peace of mind" theme the most relevant to seat belt use. Data are also reported on the effect on use of different kinds of passengers and different kinds of trips.