MADD, Drunk Driving Laws, and Deterrence

ISBN-13: 9783639132212 / Angielski / Miękka / 2009 / 124 str.

Tuncay Durna

Opis

With the effect of Mothers Against Drunk Driving(MADD) and some other citizen activist groups, antidrunk driving policies led to adoption of deterrentbased laws. However, research findings on the effectsof those laws are mixed and cannot explain thedecline on alcohol related fatalities. Moving beyondthe published literature on this topic, it ishypothesized that deterrent based laws not only havea simple deterrent effect through the threat ofpunishment, but also have a moralizing and educativeeffect on individual attitudes and behavior. Unlikethe previous research, this study uses both aggregateand individual level data together. Second, theeffects of the laws are examined over the time, notcross-sectional. Moreover, the impact of MADD onstate adoption of drunk driving laws is empiricallyevaluated for the first time. The results providedstrong evidence for effectiveness of deterrent basedlaws on individual attitudes and behavior. Thefindings also indicate that MADD is an importantfactor in shaping drunk driving policies. Theanalyses should be especially useful to activistgroups, professionals in traffic safety, and toresearchers in this area.

O autorze

Dr. Tuncay Durna received his Ph.D. in Political Science from
Kent State University in 2005. He works for the Turkish National
Police Academy.