Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens ages 16-19. More than 30% of those fatal incidents occur between Memorial Day and Labor Day – a period the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety dubs the 100 Deadliest Days. Nationwide, more than 7 teens are killed each day in summertime crashes – all of which are 100% preventable.
Awareness Does Not Reduce Risk
The Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start to summer. Traditions include the smell of burgers on the grill, lazy days on the beach, and exciting road trips. This time of year also brings a tradition of familiar road-side slogans such as “Click it or Ticket;” “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over;” and “Arrive Alive, Don’t Text and Drive.” While awareness is an important component of teen crash prevention, that alone doesn’t lower their risk.
Every year leading into the 100 Deadliest Days, teen driving safety awareness campaigns increase in number. Sadly, so do the teen fatality statistics. News reports following a teen motor vehicle crash refer to the same factors every year — Inexperience, Speeding, Driving with Passengers, Driving at Night, Distracted, Drowsy, and Impaired Driving, and Driving without a Seatbelt. These are far more than just factors. They’re conscious mental decisions made by drivers that significantly increase their risk for a deadly crash. Now it’s time to empower teens to think differently about driving.
Beliefs Lead to Behaviors
The root cause of teenage vehicle fatalities over these 100 Deadliest Days is not inexperience or other drivers. It’s the beliefs held by the teen drivers that create the behaviors (commonly called factors) that ultimately produce the crashes, injuries, and deaths our national statistics reflect. In order to change those behaviors, teens must first change their beliefs about driving:
According to a study by Liberty Mutual Insurance and Students Against Destructive Decisions:
83% of teen drivers believe they are experienced drivers when they pass the road test.
89% of teen drivers believe they are safe drivers (despite 71% admitting they speed.)
What’s more, an intensive study by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA) revealed this sobering fact:
“The expectation that driver education will lead to a decreased teen crash rate is unrealistic and beyond what current practice can be expected to achieve.”
If NHSTA doesn’t believe the driver education system will produce safe drivers, why do the majority of teens who just completed it believe they’re safe drivers?
Why Mindset Matters for 100 Deadliest Days and Beyond
The key to reducing a teen driver’s risk for crashing during these 100 Deadliest Days – and every day thereafter – must begin by developing the proper mindset for driving. The current driver training standards in America have shifted the focus from crash prevention to crash safety. Simply obtaining a license doesn’t qualify teens as safe drivers. Gaining experience, when it ends in a fatality, teaches nothing. Crashes are not determined by fate. The ultimate control system in every automobile is the driver behind the wheel. Teens are 100% capable of preventing a crash IF they have the right mindset. That mindset starts long before they even grab the keys for the car.
Empower Your Teens To Arrive Alive
Safe driving awareness campaigns play an important supporting role, but they, alone, do not save lives. Teens are well aware of the risks associated with driving. Now, they need a guide to help them change their current beliefs about driving and adopt a mindset to arrive alive. Empowering Teen Drivers To Succeed On The Road, (Why Mindset Matters) flips the script on the old-school driver’s manual and puts teens in control of their own safety. Before your teens head to the beach, graduation parties and summer BBQs, encourage them to take one hour to read this guide. It could lead to the road trip of a lifetime.
****
Join the Movement to Help Teens Arrive Alive
Join the CADR Foundation on our mission to keep teen drivers – as well as their passengers, fellow motorists, pedestrians, and bikers – safe on the road. During these 100 Deadliest Days, share this blog on your socials and tag @cadrfoundation #why mindset matters. Then tell the teens in your life: MINDSET MATTERS BECAUSE YOUR LIFE MATTERS.
