301057
Predictors of helmet ownership and helmet use among undergraduate skateboarders
Many college students use skateboards as a mode of transportation around campus as well as for leisure activity, yet helmet use remains low. The purpose of this study is to understand determinants of helmet use among college student skateboarders in order to identify and suggest appropriate public health prevention strategies within a theoretical framework.
Methods:
During 2013, 65 undergraduate students from a mid-sized university participated in the Skateboard Helmet Use survey. The survey consisted of demographic information, skateboarding history, and 55 items (within 10 subscales) using 5 constructs of the Health Belief Model. Logistic regression was used to predict helmet ownership and helmet use using the subscale scores.
Results:
During the previous week, 49 (75.4%) of the 65 participants had ridden their skateboards at least once. Of the 65 skateboarders, 30 (46.2 %) owned a helmet while only 12 (18.5 %) wore a helmet the last time they rode their skateboard. Perceived Exemption from Harm (p=0.016), Perceived Danger (p=0.028), Cost Barriers (p=0.039), Friends and Family (p=0.002), and Media (p=0.043) predicted helmet ownership. After controlling for helmet ownership, only Friends and Family (p=0.001) predicted helmet use on the most recent skateboard ride.
Conclusions:
Interventions to increase helmet use should consider both the need to increase helmet ownership and to subsequently increase helmet use. Utilizing friends and family as cues to action offers the most promising intervention strategy to increase both helmet ownership and helmet use.
Learning Areas:
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programsSocial and behavioral sciences
Learning Objectives:
Describe skateboarding use among college students.
Evaluate the predictive ability of the Health Belief Model.
Identify intervention strategies to increase helmet use among skateboarders.
Keyword(s): Prevention, College Students
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been the principal investigator or contributor to quantitative and qualitative research focusing on the environmental and social determinants of health (physical activity, built environments, neighborhood deprivation, hypertension, and skateboard injury prevention).
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.