Why 16-Year-Olds Should Not Be Allowed to Drive

Introduction: Teen Driving and Fatal Crash Rates

Car accidents have proven to be deadlier than gang violence, suicide, or drug and alcohol abuse. Every year, thousands of teens die around the world from motor vehicle crash injuries. This is a critical public safety issue that cannot be ignored, as it is simply not going to disappear on its own. Motor vehicle accidents are the number one killer of teenagers aged fifteen to twenty-four. Teenagers are involved in car accidents as both drivers and passengers at rates higher than other age groups. In addition, two out of three teens killed in crashes were traveling in vehicles driven by other teenagers.

Teenage drivers today are responsible for approximately five times as many fatal crashes per license holder as drivers between the ages of thirty-five and sixty-four. In many cases, carelessness, lack of experience, and poor decision-making are the most likely contributing factors (Laberge-Nadeau, Maag, & Bourbeau, 1992).

Inexperience and Decision-Making Behind the Wheel

Driving an automobile requires the driver to make skilled and well-timed decisions several times each second. Such decisions are primarily based on prior knowledge and driving experience that young drivers simply do not possess. A lack of driving experience is a key factor in the high incidence of teenage auto accidents. The crash rate for 16-year-olds is almost three times the rate of 18- and 19-year-olds, as that younger age group lacks experience the most.

Most novice drivers do not have sufficient training to handle the complex task of driving when they are first licensed. Motor vehicle injuries are the leading cause of death among teenagers, accounting for approximately one-third of all deaths among 16- to 19-year-olds (Williams, Preusser, Ulmer, & Weinstein, 1995).

Immaturity, Risk-Taking, and Peer Pressure at Age 16

Sixteen is the age of delinquency, irresponsibility, and peer pressure. This is the age when teenagers feel invincible and take risks that many older individuals would not consider. Driving a car gives them a sense of power — they feel that nothing can stop them. They believe that driving will help them fit in socially, and they tend to get involved in street racing and other dangerous activities.

Beyond social pressures, sixteen is a critical age during which teenagers undergo significant psychological changes and are rebellious in many ways. These emotional and psychological factors heavily affect their behavior behind the wheel, as they tend to act on emotion rather than reason. This substantially increases their risk of being involved in car accidents. There appear to be several key factors that explain the high teen crash rate: exposure, immaturity and risk-taking behaviors, and lack of driving experience. Exposure, in this context, refers to the times of day teens are most often on the roadways (Mayhew & Simpson, 1990).

References

Williams, A. F., Preusser, D. F., Ulmer, R. G., & Weinstein, H. B. (1995). Characteristics of fatal crashes of 16-year-old drivers: Implications for licensure policies. Journal of Public Health Policy, 16, 347–360.

Laberge-Nadeau, C., Maag, U., & Bourbeau, R. (1992). The effects of age and experience on accidents with injuries: Should the licensing age be raised? Accident Analysis and Prevention, 24, 107–116.

Mayhew, D. R., & Simpson, H. M. (1990). New to the road: Young drivers and novice drivers — similar problems and solutions? Ottawa, ON: Traffic Injury Research Foundation of Canada.

Preusser, D. F., Ferguson, S. A., & Williams, A. F. (1997). Effect of teenage passengers on the fatal crash risk of teenage drivers. Accident Analysis and Prevention (in press).

Ferguson, S. A., & Williams, A. F. (1996). Parents' views of driver licensing practices in the United States. Journal of Safety Research, 27, 73–81.