The Social Science Journal 44 (2007) 91–97

Ethnic and gender differences in attitudes toward driving

Jacqueline Bergdahl ∗

Department of Sociology & Anthropology, Wright State University, Dayton, OH 45435, USA

Abstract

A convenience sample of 424 students from the University of Texas at El Paso and Wright StateUniversity were surveyed about attitudes and behaviors regarding operating a motor vehicle. The objectof this study was to examine the effects of gender and ethnicity on attitudes towards driving. Gender hadmore effects on driving attitudes than ethnicity. However, Hispanic students reported needing signifi-cantly more drinks to get drunk than non-Hispanics, regardless of gender despite weighing significantlyless. These differences in behaviors may help account for the over-representation of the Hispanic ethnicgroups in driving outcomes such as collisions and deaths.© 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction

Driving outcomes differ by both gender and ethnicity. Men are much more likely to receivetraffic citations and to die in motor vehicle collisions than women. The same is true for minori-ties. Minorities are over-represented relative to their population presence in both traffic citationsand motor vehicle crash deaths. The reasons for these differences are not clearly understood.This study examines whether differences in attitudes toward the task of driving between menand women and between different ethnic groups can help explain their different experiencesbehind the wheel.

2. Gender and ethnicity

Men have consistently higher motor vehicle traffic death rates than women. More men thanwomen die while operating motor vehicles (Bergdahl & Norris, 2002). In medical literature,sex differences in death from various causes are attributed to men’s increased exposure relative

∗ Tel.: +1 937 775 2272.E-mail address: Jacqueline.Bergdahl@wright.edu.

0362-3319/$ – see front matter © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.doi:10.1016/j.soscij.2006.12.008

92 J. Bergdahl / The Social Science Journal 44 (2007) 91–97

to women to hazardous occupations, men’s self-destructive indulgence in substances such asalcohol and tobacco and men being less likely to access medical care than women (Waldron,1993). These behaviors in men are called risk-taking and are believed to account for somedifferences between men and women.

Minorities are over-represented in many outcomes relative to their representation in thepopulation. This is certainly true of driver deaths. Guerin (1997) examined ethnic differencesin driver deaths for New Mexico and found that Hispanics and Native Americans were over-represented. Examining 33 years of motor vehicle crashes in New Mexico, Schiff and Becker(1996) reported Hispanic males having consistently higher motor vehicle traffic death rates thannon-Hispanic white males. This is despite the fact that death rates for non-Hispanic whitesof both sexes in New Mexico are higher than rates for the U.S. white population. Harper,Marine, Garrett, Lezotte, and Lowenstein (2000) compared Hispanic and non-Hispanic motorvehicle crash fatalities and found Hispanic drivers to have higher rates of nonbelt use, legalalcohol intoxication, speeding and invalid driver’s licenses. Hispanic vehicles were older thannon-Hispanic, likely affecting the amount of safety equipment present.

Mexican-Americans report drinking more than other Hispanic groups and report morealcohol-related problems (Caetano & Clark, 1998; Guerin, 1997). Cherpitel and Tam (2000)found Mexican-Americans were more likely to consider driving under the influence nonprob-lematic and were also more likely to believe that they would not be arrested than whites. Inaddition, Hispanics report a higher number of drinks will be necessary to affect their drivingability than others (Caetano & Clark, 2000).

3. Results

Students enrolled in introductory sociology and communication courses at the University ofTexas at El Paso in El Paso, Texas and introductory sociology courses at Wright State Universityin Dayton, Ohio, were utilized as subjects. Self-administered 36-item questionnaires wereadministered in classes for this convenience sample. Almost 60% of the sample was Hispanic(59.2%).

Students were asked how safe they felt on a 5-point Likert scale for 13 driving situations.The scale was 1 = very safe, 2 = safe, 3 = neither safe nor unsafe, 4 = unsafe and 5 = very unsafe.Table 1 presents the results of the independent samples t test.

Table 1 shows there are significant differences between Hispanics and non-Hispanics inonly six situations. Non-Hispanics felt more comfort than Hispanics driving at night, in anunfamiliar place or car, while towing, and at two of three tested highway speeds. All thesedifferences run in the opposite direction than expected: if minorities are over-represented infatal crashes, we might expect that they express more comfort for driving in risky situations,but the Hispanics consistently expressed less comfort than non-Hispanics in these drivingsituations. The two exceptions were city driving and drinking and driving. Hispanic means forfeeling safe while driving in the city and driving after drinking were higher than non-Hispanics,but not significantly different.

There were two important differences between Hispanics and non-Hispanics with regardsto alcohol consumption that were in the expected direction. Respondents were asked “How

J. Bergdahl / The Social Science Journal 44 (2007) 91–97 93

Table 1Ethnic differences in driving situations

I feel safe driving Hispanic Non-Hispanic

At night 2.58 2.22***

In an unfamiliar place 3.54 3.25**

In the city 2.34 2.49In foul weather 3.47 3.33When tailgated 3.73 3.71After drinking 3.97 4.14While tired 3.91 3.81While angry 3.24 3.11While towing 3.65 3.42*

In an unfamiliar car 3.25 2.94***

At 70 mph 2.80 2.28***

At 80 mph 3.42 2.95***

At 90 mph 3.93 3.74∗ p = .05.∗∗ p = .01.∗∗∗ p = .001.

many drinks does it take before you are legally drunk?” Hispanics reported it took an averageof 5 drinks before they were legally drunk, compared to only 3.5 drinks for non-Hispanics(t = −3.658, p = .000). This large significant difference is despite the fact that Hispanics (average148 lbs) weighed significantly less than non-Hispanics (165) (t = 3.667, p = .000). Using oneof the many online BAC calculators, Hispanics would have a .10 BAC for this number ofdrinks consumed and weight (averaging males and females together), while non-Hispanicwould have a BAC of .06 for their level of drinking. Both Ohio and Texas have a per selimit of .08. There were no differences in percentages of drinkers or nondrinkers for the twogroups.

There were strong differences between the sexes regarding their feelings of safety whiledriving (Table 2), which were detected using t tests. In all driving situations, except feelingsafe driving while angry, males reported feeling safer than females.

Males weighed significantly more than females (184 and 136 lbs, respectively), but thenumber of drinks to get drunk was not significantly different. Females reported they neededan average 4.1 drinks before they were legally drunk, while men reported they needed 4.8 toreach the per se limit. The average male of this sample would have a BAC of .07 after 4.8drinks, while the average female would have a BAC of .09.

Gender has the larger effect on feelings of safety behind the wheel. Ethnicity accounts forfewer differences. Table 3 examines the combined effects of ethnicity and gender. t Tests wererun by gender separately for Hispanics and non-Hispanics.

In all driving situations, by comparing the means, we can observe that non-Hispanic malesreported feeling the safest, followed by Hispanic males, than non-Hispanic females withHispanic females reporting the least comfort in driving situations.

For Hispanics and non-Hispanics, males reported feeling safer than females for all drivingsituations. There were no significant differences between Hispanic men and women on theitems measuring level of safety feelings for city driving, driving while tired and driving while

94 J. Bergdahl / The Social Science Journal 44 (2007) 91–97

Table 2Gender differences in driving situations

I feel safe driving Male Female

At night 2.17 2.57***

In an unfamiliar place 3.07 3.62***

In the city 2.22 2.51**

In foul weather 3.11 3.58***

When tailgated 3.45 3.88***

After drinking 3.75 4.20***

While tired 3.74 3.94*

While angry 3.08 3.25While towing 3.23 3.75***

In an unfamiliar car 2.89 3.25***

At 70 mph 2.24 2.78***

At 80 mph 2.74 3.50***

At 90 mph 3.48 4.06***

∗ p = .05.∗∗ p = .01.∗∗∗ p = .001.

angry. The only item not significant for non-Hispanics was driving while angry. Apparently,no students consider driving while angry problematic.

Non-Hispanics responding to the question “How many drinks does it take before you arelegally drunk” indicated males would require 3.6 drinks on average and females 3.4 drinks.However, males were significantly heavier than females (195 and 145 lbs, respectively). Maleswould have a BAC of .04 while females would have a .06. Hispanic respondents showed evenlarger differences on this question. Hispanic males reported it would take 5.8 drinks before

Table 3Ethnic and gender differences in driving situations

I feel safe driving Hispanic (N = 251) Non-Hispanic (N = 173)

Male Female Male Female

At night 2.41 2.66* 1.88 2.44***

In an unfamiliar place 3.28 3.67** 2.81 3.53***

In the city 2.28 2.37 2.15 2.71**

In foul weather 3.25 3.58* 2.94 3.58***

When tailgated 3.58 3.81* 3.29 3.98***

After drinking 3.69 4.11*** 3.83 4.35**

While tired 3.84 3.95 3.61 3.94*

While angry 3.15 3.29 3.00 3.18While towing 3.42 3.77*** 2.98 3.71***

In an unfamiliar car 3.02 3.36*** 2.73 3.07*

At 70 mph 2.39 3.01*** 2.06 2.42*

At 80 mph 2.90 3.69*** 2.54 3.21***

At 90 mph 3.63 4.09** 3.30 4.03***

∗ p = .05.∗∗ p = .01.∗∗∗ p = .001.

J. Bergdahl / The Social Science Journal 44 (2007) 91–97 95

they would be legally drunk and Hispanic females 4.5 drinks. Hispanic males weighed 177 lbsand females 132 lbs (t = 8.608, p = .000). The BAC for Hispanic males would be .09, above theper se of .08, and females would have a BAC of .14 which is almost double the per se limit.

Since, there are such strong gender effects on driving attitudes, analysis was conducted onmales and females separately, examining the effect of ethnicity on attitudes.

Hispanic males expressed more discomfort than non-Hispanic males for driving at night,in unfamiliar places, while towing and at 70 and 80 mph. Hispanic males weighed less thannon-Hispanic males, however, Hispanic males reported needed more drinks on average thannon-Hispanic males before they believed they would be considered legally drunk. Weighing177 lbs and having consumed almost six alcohol beverages, Hispanic males would have aBAC of .09. For non-Hispanic males, weighing 195 lbs and consuming almost four alcoholbeverages, they would have a BAC of .06. Hispanic males would be over the per se limit of.08, while non-Hispanic males would be under that legal limit.

Hispanic females weighed significantly less than non-Hispanic females (132 and 144 lbs,respectively). However, Hispanic females also reported requiring significantly more drinks inorder to become legally drunk than non-Hispanic females. Hispanic females reported needing4.5 alcohol beverages to be considered drunk, while non-Hispanic females needed only 3.4to achieve the same state. Hispanic females would have a BAC of .14 at this rate of alcoholconsumption, while non-Hispanic females would only have a BAC of .06.

4. Discussion

The object of this study was to examine the effects of gender and ethnicity on attitudestowards driving. Analysis indicates more effects on driving attitudes from gender than fromethnicity.

Hispanics expressed less comfort for driving in risky situations than non-Hispanics. Morepositive attitudes toward driving risk-taking were expected for Hispanics who as a groupare over-represented in fatal crashes. However, Hispanics reported it would take significantlyhigher levels of alcohol consumption before they would consider themselves legally drunkcompared to non-Hispanics. This was in addition to the fact that Hispanic students weighedsignificantly less. This would put Hispanic students behind the wheel at much higher bloodalcohol concentrations, which carry a strong risk factor for collision and death. Your risk of amotor vehicle crash increases as your blood alcohol concentration increases (Zador, 1991).

There were strong differences between the sexes regarding their feelings of safety whiledriving. Men felt safer than women in all driving situations. This is consistent with theliterature—other surveys have found similar differences between the sexes (Bergdahl, 2005;Farrow & Brissing, 1990; Harre, Field, & Kirkwood, 1996; Wieczorek, Mirand, & Callahan,1994).

Looking at the effects of both, it is clear that gender has the larger effect on attitudes behindthe wheel while ethnicity accounts for fewer differences. But the ethnic differences fell in avery important area: drinking and driving.

Hispanic students both male and female reported much higher averages for number ofalcoholic beverages needed to be considered legally drunk than non-Hispanic students. This

96 J. Bergdahl / The Social Science Journal 44 (2007) 91–97

was especially interesting given that Hispanic students weighed less than the non-Hispanicstudents within their respective genders. Research on alcohol consumption within the Mexican-American ethnic group (the major group of Hispanics for the region where this survey wascompleted) indicates that this group’s strong family orientation may facilitate alcohol con-sumption. Drinking is common if not encouraged at family social events like baptisms andquincenieras for many Mexican-Americans (Treno, Alaniz, & Gruenewald, 2000). In addition,Caetano and Clark (1998) find a positive association between education, income and drink-ing and higher consumption for Mexican-Americans. And college students would certainly fitinto this group. It is also consistent with Cherpitel and Tam (2000) who found that Mexican-Americans consider driving under the influence less problematic and are less likely to believethey will be arrested for it than whites. Caetano and Clark (2000) also found that Hispanicsreport a higher number of drinks will be needed to affect their driving ability.

5. Conclusion

Hispanic students in this convenience sample did not have more risk-taking attitudes towardsdriving than non-Hispanics as originally hypothesized. However, they did differ in one impor-tant way, which may account for increased driving risk—alcohol consumption. Hispanicstudents reported requiring more alcohol drinks on average to be considered legally drunkthan non-Hispanic students despite having lower body weights. This alone would put them at ahigher risk of collision and death, since the relationship between blood alcohol concentrationand crash risk is positive. Both studies of car crash fatalities and case–control studies of driverson the road have established that use of alcohol by drivers increases crash risk, and that crashrisk increases as BACs rise (Borkenstein, Crowther, Shumate, Ziel, & Zylman, 1974; Zador,1991).

Why minority groups are over-represented in motor vehicle collisions needs more study.Part of the answer relates to drinking and driving. Hispanics are over-represented in driverdeaths (Guerin, 1997) and Hispanic males have consistently higher motor vehicle traffic deathrates than non-Hispanic males (Harper et al., 2000). The Hispanic ethnic group is a growingone in many parts of the United States. This group may need targeted prevention efforts aboutdrinking and driving.

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