Knowledge and attitude of teenagers regarding traffic safety rules

Abstract

Introduction: Road traffic accidents are the leading issues in health care sector. Every day thousands of people die and many will be left with physical disabilities which makes their family life more miserable. Road traffic accidents are commonly seen in teenagers and young adults. This study was conducted to understand the level of knowledge of teenagers on traffic safety rules and their attitude about it. Materials and Methods: A descriptive design was adopted for the study. The data was collected using structured knowledge questionnaire to understand the knowledge on regulations of traffic safety and attitude was measured using rating scale. The validity of the domains of questionnaire and rating scale was established in consultation with six experts. Reliability of the knowledge questionnaire was tested by using spilt half method and attitude scale by Cronbach’s alpha. Pretesting of tool and pilot study was conducted among 10 samples. Results: The study results showed 80% students had average knowledge on traffic safety rules and had a favorable attitude towards traffic safety rules. There was a significant association between level of knowledge and demographic variables such as such age (?2=0.044), and information regarding traffic safety rules (?2=0.043). There was a significant association between attitude and source of information regarding road safety rules (?2= 0.018). Conclusion: The finding of the study revealed that majority of the teenagers had average knowledge and had favorable attitude towards traffic safety rules. Keywords: Attitude, Driving license, Knowledge, Traffic safety accidents, Traffic safety rules.