Project: THE ECOLOGY AND EPIDIMIOLOGY OF PARENT SAFETY BEHAVIOR  

Sponsor: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Maternal and Child Health Status: In Process
IPS Staff: Tama Leventhal

Purpose and Approach
Safe environments are fundamental for successful and healthy children. Parental choices are the most important determinant of each child’s risk of unintentional injury. Motor vehicle injuries, falls, burns, and poisonings are common injuries among infants and toddlers, and many can be prevented by parental behaviors. For instance, the use of safety products such as car seats, stair gates, smoke alarms, and cabinet latches has been shown to lower risk. Little is known about how best to facilitate parents’ adoption of safety behaviors, and no comprehensive, multilevel models of parental safety behaviors have been tested. This project seeks to develop new insights into the individual, household, and community determinants of parental safety behaviors in U.S. parents of children ages 0-33 months. We will analyze data collected in the National Evaluation of the Healthy Steps for Young Children Program. This dataset includes 5,565 infants enrolled in 15 U.S. cities in 1996-97, with follow-up until they were 30-33 months old.

Results and Publications
Forthcoming.