"Parents Are the Key": Raising parent's awareness of their role in safe teen driving

BACKGROUND Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens. Research suggests that parental management and monitoring may be associated with fewer teen crashes. CDC's efforts to address this issue include the development, implementation, and evaluation of a communications campaign, "Parents Are the Key" (PATK). The goal of PATK is to increase awareness among parents of their important role in managing their teenage drivers' behaviors and educating their teens about high-risk driving activities. METHODS The target audience for PATK is parents of teen drivers. CDC used formative research to determine effective messages and channels through which to communicate with parents about safe teen driving. The resulting campaign includes a website; a parent-teen driving agreement; radio and online ads; and social media. CDC launched a two-month pilot study of the campaign in Columbus, OH and Little Rock, AR in October 2009. The goal of the pilot was to assess the market penetration and effectiveness of the campaign. RESULTS Evaluation efforts included a pre/post campaign phone survey with parents in the pilot cities. Results showed that parents exposed to the campaign were more likely to talk to their children about driving-related issues they would otherwise be least likely to address. Process evaluation included measuring media coverage; the reach of online and radio ads; website and social media traffic; and materials distribution. CONCLUSIONS Increasing parental awareness of their role in safe teen driving through the PATK campaign can be an important component of an overall strategy to reduce teen crashes.