Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Seatbelt Workshop

This report presents the findings from research commissioned by Oxfordshire County Council to evaluate the effectiveness of a workshop-based intervention designed to improve attitudes towards seat belt wearing.

a2om designed a Seatbelt Workshop using online stimulus as a basis for a group discussion. The methodological approach to affect a change in attitudes was a scenario-based group discussion on the topic.

Previous research has found that both scenario-based interventions and group discussion methods can improve attitudes and behaviour towards road safety issues. The group discussion method is also in line with addressing the higher levels of the goals for driver education (Hattaka et al, 2002) – now underpinning the competency framework in the learning to drive process.

The objectives of the Seatbelt Workshop were:-
• To increase awareness of the impact of a crash with and without wearing a seatbelt;
• To increase awareness of the effects of different speeds on impact of a crash with and without wearing a seatbelt;
• To increase knowledge about the benefits of seatbelts and how to wear them correctly;
• To increase awareness of the responsibilities of wearing a seatbelt on every journey.

A questionnaire was designed based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour to assess the effect of the workshop on attitudes to seatbelts over time.

Summary of findings and conclusions
Data was collected for two studies. Study 1 results (Larkmead School) analysed pre-workshop and one year later showed that over 90% of the participants reported almost always wearing a seat belt regardless of their seating position in a vehicle compared with less than 40% pre-workshop. Students held more positive attitudes towards seat belt use after the workshop with 90% claiming that they intended to use a seatbelt next time they were in a car. For Study 2, results showed that pre-workshop, 60% of the sample reported wearing a seatbelt no matter what their position in a vehicle. The results for post-workshop attitudes showed that 100% of the participants from St Birinus School reported that they wore a seatbelt no matter what their position within the car.

The findings from Study 2 therefore repeat the pattern of effects on attitude change towards seatbelts as found in Study 1. Both studies suggest a positive impact towards seatbelt wearing even several months after the participating in the workshop. It appears that the Seatbelt Workshop led to improved attitudes towards seat belt usage.

The results are discussed with reference to support for the use of scenario-based materials and group discussions. It is recommended that this approach be taken in other schools with ongoing evaluations to assess effectiveness.