Highway Safety Needs of US Hispanic Communities
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Highway Safety Needs of U.S. Hispanic Communities: Issues and Strategies National Highway Traffic Safety Administration September 1995 DOT HS 808 373 iii This publication is distributed by the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in the interest of information exchange. The opinions, findings and conclusions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the Department of Transportation or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The United States Government assumes no liability for its contents or use thereof. If trade or manufacturers’ name or products are mentioned, it is because they are considered essential to the object of the publication and should not be construed as an endorsement. The United States Government does not endorse products or manufacturers. iv Note: This report was not specifically prepared for electronic distribution. Therefore, page numbering and spacing may be slightly off due to electronic translations, and some charts, graphs, etc. may not be available in this version. If you would like a printed copy of this report, please write to: Gayle Yarborough Office of Program Development and Evaluation NTS-30 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 400 7th Street, S.W. Washington, DC 2090 or send a fax to Ms. Yarborough at 202-366-7096 v TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................... vii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................. ix I. INTRODUCTION ................................................... 1 II. METHODS .........................................................7 III. HIGHWAY SAFETY PROBLEMS IN HISPANIC COMMUNITIES ........15 Drinking and Driving .................................................18 Speeding ...........................................................24 Inattention ..........................................................26 Seat Belt Use .......................................................28 Child Safety Seat Use .................................................31 Segments of the Hispanic Population with Special Highway Safety Problems .......................................34 Young Inexperienced Drivers .....................................34 Recent Immigrants .............................................36 Rural Residents ................................................38 Elderly Drivers and Pedestrians ...................................39 Unlicensed and Uninsured Drivers .................................40 Impact of Socioeconomic Status ........................................42 Issues on the United States/Mexican Border ...............................43 Knowledge and Systems Integration Issues ................................44 IV. CONNECTEDNESS OF HISPANIC COMMUNITIES TO HIGHWAY SAFETY ORGANIZATIONS AND OTHER SOCIETAL INSTITUTIONS 47 Hispanic Community Members' Interaction with Agencies and Organizations .....47 Highway Safety Organizations .........................................49 Law Enforcement Agencies ............................................61 Health Organizations ................................................71 Emergency Medical Services ..........................................76 Educational Institutions ...............................................78 iii V. EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES FOR HEALTH AND SAFETY PROMOTION .83 Realistic Messages About Health and Safety Promotion ......................83 Importance of Personal Contact and Relationships ..........................86 Using Traditional and Non-Traditional Channels ............................87 The Role of Community-Based Organizations ..............................88 Symbols, Institutions, and Delivery Systems ...............................90 The Schools ...................................................91 The Church ...................................................92 The Family ...................................................93 The Role of the Media ...........................................94 Reactions to the Vince and Larry Campaign ..............................104 Sociocultural Factors ................................................106 Differences Among the Hispanic Communities .......................106 The Impact of Machismo ........................................107 Attitudes Toward Alcohol .......................................109 Women as Intervenors ..........................................110 Strategies to Avoid ..................................................111 VI. DISCUSSION ....................................................115 REFERENCES .........................................................121 APPENDICES Appendix A - Participating Agencies and Organizations .................... 127 Appendix B - Focus Group Participants ..................................157 iv TABLE OF FIGURES Figure 1. Death Rates From Motor Vehicle Crashes ...............................4 Figure 2. Highway Safety Problems Identified by Study Participants .................17 Figure 3. Effective Strategies Identified by Study Participants .......................84 Figure 4. Positive Symbols, Institutions, and Delivery Systems Identified by Study Participants ..............................................90 v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Representatives of 129 agencies and organizations participated in telephone discussions with project staff. The CDM Group appreciates the time these busy community leaders willingly devoted to this study. In addition, other agency and organization personnel responded to our requests for reports, surveys, and public education materials. Appendix A contains a complete list of the representatives of participating agencies and organizations who provided time, data, and valuable insights to this study. Over three hundred community members participated in the forty-eight focus groups conducted during the study. The CDM Group appreciates the generous contribution of time and the wealth of ideas expressed by community members in the focus group locations. The CDM Group also appreciates the contribution of community members who served as focus group moderators. They assisted in the development of the moderator's guide and the recruitment of focus group participants and facilitated eight focus groups in their target areas. Focus group moderators for the study were: Tammy Membreño, Executive Director Barrio Action Group Los Angeles, California Ben A. Romero, Interim Director Job Services/Cooperative Education Front Range Community College Westminster, Colorado Eva Young Independent Consultant Washington, DC Angel Valdes Metro-Dade County Department of Youth and Family Development Miami, Florida José Prince Institute for Puerto Rican/Hispanic Elderly New York, New York Rebeca Ramos, Director Training and Technical Assistance Project United States-Mexico Border Health Association El Paso, Texas vi The CDM Group collaborated with several organizations in the target sites to plan and implement focus groups. CDM appreciates the contribution of the staff members who ensured that the focus groups would take place in comfortable and secure surroundings and that community members would participate. The following organizations served as focus group hosts: Barrio Action Group, Los Angeles, California; Mexican American Community Services Agency, San Jose, California; Denver Social Services Department, Denver, Colorado; Adams County Department of Social Services, Commerce City, Colorado; Valley-Wide Health Services, Alamosa, Colorado; Carlos Manuel Rosario Adult Education Center, Washington, DC; Bell Multicultural Senior High School, Washington, DC; Barbara Chambers Children's Center, Washington, DC; Wilson Center, Washington, DC; La Clinica Del Pueblo, Washington, DC; Veccinos en Acción, Miami, Florida; Val River & Son, Inc., Miami, Florida; Bronx Community College, Bronx, New York; Our Lady of Good Counsel, Staten Island, New York; Latino Civic Association, Staten Island, New York; El Paso YWCA, El Paso, Texas; and Avance, Rio Grande Valley Area Chapter, McAllen, Texas. Additional information about these organizations is provided in Appendix A. Finally, Gerardo Berthin, Beverly Vigil Ellermann, and Elizabeth Younger worked with CDM staff as expert consultants during the course of the study. vii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Introduction The Hispanic population in the United States is growing seven times faster than the U.S. population as a whole. Hispanics are projected to compose at least 11 percent of the U.S. population by the year 2000, and 22 percent by 2050, becoming the Nation's largest minority group. This rapid population growth means that Hispanics will constitute an increasing proportion of crash injuries and fatalities. Moreover, Hispanics may be at greater crash risk than other segments of the population. Data collected by the National Vital Statistics System show that between 1988 and 1990, the death rate among Hispanics from motor vehicle crashes surpassed the death rates for African Americans and for whites. This report presents the results of a study designed to identify the highway safety needs of Hispanic communities in the United States and determine how best to promote safety to those communities. Communities included in the study were Hispanics of Central American origin in the District of Columbia; Hispanics of Cuban origin in Florida; Hispanics of Mexican origin in California, Colorado, and Texas; and Hispanics of Puerto Rican origin in the New York City/New Jersey area. Methodology The study involved telephone and onsite discussions