Licensing Restrictions Research Articles

Pre-licensed driving experience and car crash involvement during the learner and restricted, licence stages of graduated driver licensing: Findings from the New Zealand Drivers Study

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to determine whether pre-licence driving experiences, that is driving before beginning the licensing process, increased or decreased crash risk as a car driver, during the learner or the restricted licence stages of the graduated driver licensing system (GDLS). MethodStudy participants were 15–24 year old members of the New Zealand Drivers Study (NZDS) – a prospective cohort study of newly licensed car drivers. The interview stages of the NZDS are linked to, the three licensing stages of the GDLS: learner, restricted and full. Baseline demographic (age, ethnicity, residential location, deprivation), personality (impulsivity, sensation seeking, aggression) and, behavioural data, (including pre-licensed driving behaviour), were obtained at the learner licence interview. Data on distance driven and crashes that occurred at the learner licence and restricted licence stages, were reported at the restricted and full licence interviews, respectively. Crash data were also obtained from police traffic crash report files and this was combined with the self-reported crash data. The analysis of the learner licence stage crashes, when only supervised driving is allowed, was based on the participants who had passed the restricted licence test and undertaken the NZDS, restricted licence interview (n=2358). The analysis of the restricted licence stage crashes, when unsupervised driving is first allowed, was based on those who had passed the full licence test and completed the full licence interview (n=1428). ResultsAfter controlling for a range of demographic, personality, behavioural variables and distance driven, Poisson regression showed that the only pre-licence driving behaviour that showed a consistent relationship with subsequent crashes was on-road car driving which was associated with an increased risk of being the driver in a car crash during the learner licence period. ConclusionThis research showed that pre-licensed driving did not reduce crash risk among learner or restricted licensed drivers, and in some cases (such as on-road car driving) may have increased risk. Young people should be discouraged from the illegal behaviour of driving a car on-road before licensing.

The overall program effects of California's 3-Tier Assessment System pilot on crashes and mobility among senior drivers

IntroductionIn 2007, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) undertook a pilot study of the 3-Tier Assessment System, the purpose of which was to examine, in a large-scale real-time public agency setting, the effectiveness of this method for both reducing the crash risk of individual drivers and for extending the safe driving years of Californian drivers of all ages. MethodThe 3-Tier Assessment System consisted of tiered series of screening tools incorporated into the in-office driver's license renewal process. These screening tools identified drivers with various kinds of functional limitations (physical, visual, and cognitive/perceptual), that might impact safe driving. Paired with the screening tools were educational materials designed to improve drivers' knowledge of their own limitations, including compensating techniques. The present study is a population-based evaluation of the effects of the pilot on subsequent crash risk and mobility outcomes (including delicensure) of participating drivers age 70 and older. Pilot participants were compared with two control groups processed according to standard California DMV license renewal procedures. Because the 3-Tier Assessment System was designed to identify limitations normally associated with aging, the present analyses focus on drivers age 70 and older. However, it should be emphasized that during the 3-Tier pilot the screening tools were applied to drivers of all ages. ResultsThere were two main findings. First, there were no consistent, statistically significant differences between the pilot and control groups in crash risk in the two years following screening. Second, pilot participants experienced statistically significant effects on mobility. These effects included delays in time to complete their license renewal, an increase in the number of assigned license restrictions, and an increase in the number of customers failing to renew their driving privilege. ConclusionsBased on these findings, suggestions for further research are made. Impact on industryNone.

Parental influence on adolescent compliance with graduated driver licensing conditions and crashes as a restricted licensed driver: New Zealand Drivers Study

AimTo examine the influence of parental knowledge of, and support for graduated driver licensing (GDL) conditions, parental management of adolescent driving and parental driving behaviour on adolescent compliance with GDL conditions and crashes as a restricted licence driver. MethodThis research was part of the New Zealand Drivers Study (NZDS), a prospective cohort study of 3992 newly licensed car drivers. NZDS participants were recruited at the learner licence stage, with follow-up aligned with the GDL stages. At the restricted licence stage 1200 parents of NZDS adolescents, aged 15–17 years at learner licensure, were recruited and completed interviews. 895 of these adolescents progressed to their full licence and completed the full licence interview. These 895 parent–adolescent pairs were the study population in this research. Topics examined included parental knowledge of, and support for GDL conditions, management of adolescent driving (driving rules, adolescent vehicle ownership, delaying licensure), and their own driving behaviours. Outcomes examined were adolescent compliance with GDL restricted licence conditions (night-time and passenger), and crashes as a driver during the restricted licence stage. ResultsAfter controlling for other variables, factors independently associated with adolescent low compliance with GDL conditions were: low parental knowledge of conditions, parents’ implementing few driving rules, adolescent vehicle ownership, and parent crash involvement. Factors independently associated with adolescents being a crash involved driver were: parents’ actively delaying licensure, adolescent vehicle ownership, and parent crash involvement. ConclusionThere is increasing recognition of the importance of parental involvement in adolescent driving. The results show that parents are influential in determining adolescent compliance with GDL and risk of crash. Parents can have considerable positive influence on their adolescent's driving through ensuring compliance with the components of GDL, limiting vehicle ownership and by modelling safe driving behaviours.

Inexhaustible Distribution Rights for Copyright Owners and the Foreclosure of Secondary Markets for Used Software

Contractually based software distribution systems used by intellectual property owners seeking to rachet up their exclusive rights have recently been exposed to judicial scrutiny in the higher courts of both the European Union and United States. The main question on both sides of the Atlantic is the extent to which retention of title clauses and restrictive licensing allow owners to sidestep doctrinal obstacles to post first sale restraints on the alienation of tangible items embodying intellectual property. The wildly dissonant answers are due partly to the very different legislative frameworks within which the question arose but also reflect very different judicial responses to economic considerations and developments in digital technology. We consider the vexed issue of if, and when, contracts can displace long accepted restrictions on the reach of copyright’s exclusive right of distribution and thus allow right holders to privately regulate secondary markets for used software products. To this end we explore two fundamental issues: first, whether the answer to the question posed above should vary depending on whether users have acquired software products embodied in tangible items such as CDs, DVDs, chips, manuals, mobile phones and electronic tablets or downloaded them electronically; and, second, the role competition principles can play in resisting the trend towards an inexhaustible right of distribution for software owners.

Reprint of “Gender Differences and Areas of Common Concern in the Driving Behaviors and Attitudes of Adolescents”

New Zealand adolescent males (n=389) and females (n=247) with a mean age of 15.86years, were compared on a number of self-reported risky driving and passenger behaviors and attitudes. The survey found that males were significantly more likely than females to report driving, engaging in unsafe driving behaviors, drinking and driving, speeding on the open road, breaking the night curfew associated with being on a restricted licence, and dangerous thought patterns. Females were more likely to have been the passenger of a drinking driver after the last party they attended. High levels of unlicensed driving, breaking the rules associated with a restricted licence, failing to wear a seat belt in the back seat, speeding, and being the passenger of a drinking driver were found in both groups. Recommendations for intervention strategies are made.

Managing psoriasis in children and young people

Psoriasis is an inflammatory condition which manifests in the skin and joints. Psoriasis can affect children and young people; the late teens and early twenties are a peak time for psoriasis developing for the first time. Psoriasis can affect quality of life in children and young people. Nurses can support children, young people and their families in managing psoriasis, supporting and educating on general skin and joint care and topical treatments to manage the condition. Psoriasis treatments for children and young people often have licensing restrictions, but National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines on the assessment and management of psoriasis give guidance on all treatments for psoriasis.

Exhaustion, geographical licensing restrictions and transfer prohibitions: two surprising decisions

On Exhaustion, Geographical Licensing Restrictions and Transfer Prohibitions. Two Surprising Decisions from the European Court of Justice on Contracts for the Supply of Digital Content.

Learner driver experiences and crash risk as an unsupervised driver

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to describe the driving experiences of learner licensed drivers and examine the association between these driving experiences, associated factors, and on-road car crash involvement during the unsupervised restricted license stage. MethodsData were drawn from a cohort investigation of newly licensed drivers. Information on demographic characteristics, personality, and risk behaviors was collected at the baseline interview. At the first follow-up interview (restricted license stage) study members were asked details about their experiences as a learner licensed driver: professional driving lessons, supervised driving, unsupervised driving, and driving courses in which they participated. During the second follow-up interview (full license stage), data were collected on crash involvement and driving exposure during the restricted license stage. Regression analysis was used to determine independent relationships between learner license driving experience variables and crash involvement. ResultsAfter adjusting for demographic, personality factors, and driving exposure at the restricted license stage, increased time spent on the learner license was associated with a reduced risk of crash involvement during the unsupervised restricted license stage. ConclusionResults presented in this paper suggest that learner drivers in New Zealand should be encouraged to spend more time on their learner license to enable them to gain skills and experience to help reduce their crash risk when they are allowed to drive unsupervised. Impact on IndustryCompared with novice drivers who are on their learner license for the least amount of time, those who spend the most amount of time on their learner license have reduced risk of on-road crash involvement as an unsupervised driver.Learner drivers and their supervisors need to be aware of the length of time required for practice in order to reduce the risks of crash involvement when they are able to drive unsupervised (O'Brien et al., 2012).The recently introduced increase in the minimum driver licensing age in NZ, tougher restricted license stage driving test (aimed at encouraging 120hours of supervised driving), and the Safe Teen driver campaign (NZ Transport Agency, 2012) are all strategies targeted at improving the safety of learner drivers. These strategies need to be evaluated to ensure they are achieving their goals.

E-books in Academic Libraries: Challenges for Acquisition and Collection Management

This bibliographic essay examines the difficulties associated with the selection, licensing, acquisition, and management of e-books in academic libraries. The potential advantages of e-book technology are likely to be realized only to the extent that they advance the economic goals of e-book suppliers and are consistent with the legal framework that has been negotiated by publishers, vendors, libraries, and readers. Many difficulties can be traced to a lack of uniformity in license terms, access restrictions, and librarians’ expectations. Likewise, sustainable access to e-books is hindered by impermanent physical media, proprietary file formats and software, and restrictive license provisions. Although the goals of e-book providers are sometimes inconsistent with those of universities, librarians are well-positioned to guide vendors in the development of e-book licenses and platforms.

Mapping for the Masses: GIS Lite & Online Mapping Tools in Academic Libraries

Customized colorful maps depicting complex social data are much more prevalent today than in the past. Not only in formal published outlets, interactive map sites make it easy to create and publish custom maps in more casual outlets such as social media. This article defines GIS Lite, describes three licensed products currently licensed by institutions, and discusses issues that arise from their varied functionality and license restrictions.

New Jersey's License Plate Decal Requirement for Graduated Driver Licenses: Attitudes of Parents and Teenagers, Observed Decal Use, and Citations for Teenage Driving Violations

Objectives: On May 1, 2010, New Jersey implemented a law requiring teenagers with learner's permits or probationary licenses to display reflective decals on the front and rear license plates when they drive. The current study examined attitudes of parents and teenagers toward this requirement, use of decals, and reported violations and police enforcement of the graduated driver license law. Method: Statewide telephone surveys of representative samples of parents and teenagers were conducted in February to April 2010 and March to June 2011. Use of decals among probationary license holders was observed at 4 high schools in fall 2010 and in spring 2011 and hand-out surveys were distributed. Data on citations issued for violations of the graduated driver license law were obtained. Results: When interviewed in spring 2011, a large majority of parents of probationary license holders, parents of learner's permit holders, and teenagers with probationary licenses disapproved of decals for probationary licenses. About two thirds of both sets of parents and about half of teenagers disapproved of decals for learner's permits. Support for decals for both license types declined significantly from 2010 to 2011. For parents and teenagers alike, opposition was mainly attributed to concern about identifying and/or targeting teenage drivers by other drivers, predators, or police. In 2011, 77 percent of parents of probationary license holders said that their teenagers had decals for the vehicles driven most often; 46 percent said their teenagers always used decals. Fifty-six percent of parents of learner's permit holders said that their teenagers had decals for the vehicles driven most often; 37 percent said that their teenagers always used decals. Teenagers’ reported violations of license restrictions either increased or were similar in 2011 compared to 2010. Observed rates of decal use by probationary license holders at high schools in spring 2011 ranged from 24 to 64 percent. The number of statewide citations for teenage licensing law violations doubled in the year after the decal requirement took effect compared to the prior year. Excluding decal violations, citations increased by 52 percent. Conclusions: Early examination of New Jersey's decal requirement found widespread opposition, primarily due to concerns about identifying/targeting teenage drivers, though first-hand reports of such incidents were very rare. Many teenagers do not use the decals. Increased issuance of citations for violations of the teenage licensing law suggests that decals are facilitating police enforcement. However, based on teenagers’ self-reports, the requirement does not appear to have achieved the ultimate goal of increased compliance.

Using Surveillance Data to Inform Community Action: The Effect of Alcohol Sale Restrictions on Intentional Injury-related Ambulance Pickups

Youth violence disproportionately affects inner city, urban minority communities in the USA. This article illustrates the use of surveillance data to inform and evaluate community action directed at this serious problem. Community efforts in response to surveillance data indicating high rates of violence surrounding convenience stores with unrestricted alcohol beverage licenses provided a natural experiment to examine the impact of imposing licensing restrictions on intentional injury rates. Rates of ambulance pickups for intentional injuries in the 15- to 24-year-old population in five census tracts where alcoholic beverage sales were restricted were compared to five census tracts with similar demographic characteristics near stores where restrictions were not instituted. Time periods included an 18-month baseline period, a 6-month period during which restrictions were in effect in the intervention communities, and an 18-month period following lifting of this restriction resulting from legal action by store owners. The monthly average rate of ambulance pickups for violent injuries showed a significantly greater baseline-to-intervention phase decrease in the intervention communities (i.e., from 19.6 to 0 per 1,000) than in the control communities (i.e., 7.4 to 3.3 per 1,000). This rate subsequently increased to 11.4 in the intervention communities after the restriction was removed. This study illustrates the potential value of surveillance data for guiding community mobilization efforts and for evaluating the impact of such efforts. It also demonstrates the potential impact of restricting inexpensive, single-serve alcoholic beverages on rates of violence.

GO_Sync — A Framework to Synchronize Crowd-Sourced Mapping Contributors from Online Communities and Transit Agency Bus Stop Inventories

Proprietary formats and licensing restrictions limit individuals from sharing, viewing, or updating geographic (e.g., map) datasets and also restrict the use of these data to create innovative location-based services. Open geographic data repositories are now emerging that do not have these restrictions. The General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) is a common open format for public transportation agencies’ schedules, routes, and geographic bus stop information. However, transit agencies struggle to internally maintain and update these very large official datasets. Meanwhile, OpenStreetMap.org (OSM), an online free-content “Wikipedia-like” repository of geographic data, currently has little information about U.S. public transportation, but does have a large number of users willing to freely contribute their efforts to improve geographic data for their communities. This paper presents GO_Sync, a framework and open-source software tool for synchronizing transit data between the transit agency’s official GTFS dataset and OSM. GO_Sync connects the wealth of data from GTFS datasets with the ability of the OSM community to contribute crowd-sourced improvements to large datasets. The GO_Sync tool therefore enables public transportation agencies to upload GTFS data to OSM and retrieve crowd-sourced data back, while the online community can edit and correct the bus stop locations and amenities based on existing GTFS data. Successfully translating GTFS data into the OSM format will enable over 125 transit agencies across the U.S. to share their public-domain data with the OSM community.

Testimony to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Briefing on Regulatory Barriers to Entrepreneurship & Consequences for Civil Rights

This written testimony to the U.S. Civil Rights Commission addresses the consequences of government restrictions on entrepreneurship. The testimony focuses first on occupational licensing restrictions and second on certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) or certificate of need (CON) laws. It concludes that economic liberty is a crucial civil right for all Americans and restrictions on that freedom have a disproportionately negative consequence for immigrants, the underrepresented, and members of racial minorities.

IP Foreclosure & Antitrust Foreclosure

Professor Christina Bohannan’s IP Misuse as Foreclosure enlightens the debate over the patent misuse doctrine’s role in regulating intellectual property owners’ ever-expanding claims. Presently, courts scrutinize licensing restrictions under the antitrust laws only after determining that the IP holder has exceeded what the Federal Circuit has called the “exclusionary zone” of the IP right. Professor Bohannan wisely rejects this question-begging inquiry, explaining that “[e]very licensing agreement contains terms that are not express in the [IP] grant, and the beyond-the-scope test does not provide a meaningful way to determine which of these terms lies ‘within the scope’” To bring coherence to this area, Professor Bohannan would eschew the existing two-step test in favor of an exclusive focus on “the core IP values of promoting innovation and protecting access to the public domain.” Commenting on her piece, Professor Thomas Cotter points out that antitrust law and IP policy cannot be distinguished so easily. IP holders simultaneously possess both (1) a property right to foreclose competition; and (2) a privilege to compete in an open market. As Professor Cotter recognizes, antitrust law, no less than IP policy, seeks to mediate these rights and privileges. He suggests broadening antitrust doctrine, if necessary, rather than using IP policy to condemn licensing restrictions as misuse that antitrust doctrine would otherwise permit. The misuse problem, however, is more fundamental than either Professors Bohannan or Cotter suggest. IP policy and antitrust law seek precisely the same objectives — an optimal melding of a property-rights regime that insulates owners from competition, and a competitive regime in which everything that might constitute property is up for grabs. A coherent solution will not come from tweaking either IP or antitrust. Both already serve as syntheses of society’s dual commitment to property rights and competitive markets. Instead, the law must step back and focus directly on how one structures a legal regime that commits itself to these conflicting goals.Part I summarizes existing law and Professor Bohannan’s proposal. Part II explains that since IP policy and antitrust doctrine share common goals, her approach essentially replicates what modern courts do in misuse cases. Part III suggests a potentially more fruitful path.

E-books in academic libraries: Challenges for sharing and use

This paper reviews the recent literature on e-book sharing and use in post-secondary libraries, exploring current restrictions on viewing, printing, downloading, circulation, and interlibrary loan. It also discusses the ways in which these restrictions influence the library lending of e-book readers and other mobile devices. The most fundamental problems include restrictive license provisions, proprietary software and file formats, digital rights management (DRM), and the single-user business model adopted by many e-book vendors.

A strategy for the generation, characterization and distribution of animal models by The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research

Progress in Parkinson’s disease (PD) research and therapeutic development is hindered by many challenges, including a need for robust preclinical animal models. Limited availability of these tools is due to technical hurdles, patent issues, licensing restrictions and the high costs associated with generating and distributing these animal models. Furthermore, the lack of standardization of phenotypic characterization and use of varying methodologies has made it difficult to compare outcome measures across laboratories. In response, The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) is directly sponsoring the generation, characterization and distribution of preclinical rodent models, enabling increased access to these crucial tools in order to accelerate PD research. To date, MJFF has initiated and funded the generation of 30 different models, which include transgenic or knockout models of PD-relevant genes such as Park1 (also known as Park4 and SNCA), Park8 (LRRK2), Park7 (DJ-1), Park6 (PINK1), Park2 (Parkin), VPS35, EiF4G1 and GBA. The phenotypic characterization of these animals is performed in a uniform and streamlined manner at independent contract research organizations. Finally, MJFF created a central repository at The Jackson Laboratory (JAX) that houses both non-MJFF and MJFF-generated preclinical animal models. Funding from MJFF, which subsidizes the costs involved in transfer, rederivation and colony expansion, has directly resulted in over 2500 rodents being distributed to the PD community for research use.

U.S. Policies to Enhance Older Driver Safety: A Systematic Review of the Literature

The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic review of the literature related to state policies concerning older drivers and to draw policy conclusions about which policies appear to work to reduce older driver crashes and to identify areas needed for further research. Specific policies examined in this paper concern medical reporting and medical review, license renewal processes, and driver testing. A study was included in the systematic review if it met the following criteria: published in English between 1991and January 2013; included data on human subjects aged 65 and older residing in the United States; included information on at least one policy related to older drivers; and had a transportation-related outcome variable (e.g., crash, fatality, renewal). A total of 29 studies met inclusion criteria. Twenty-two studies investigated license renewal and seven articles examined medical reporting. In-person license renewal requirements were associated with reduced risk for fatal crashes. Restricted licenses were associated with reduced number of miles driven per week. More intensive renewal requirements and being the subject of a medical report to the licensing authority was associated with delicensure. Given the importance of driving to mobility, quality of life, and public safety, more research is needed.

The Role of Quality in Service Markets Organized as Multi-Attribute Auctions

We develop an empirical methodology to study markets for services. These markets are typically organized as multi-attribute auctions in which buyers take into account seller's price as well as various characteristics, including quality. Our identification and estimation strategies exploit observed buyers' and sellers' decisions to recover the distribution of sellers' qualities, the distribution of seller's costs conditional on quality, and the distribution of buyers' tastes. Our empirical results from the on-line market for programming services confirm that quality plays an important role. We use our estimates to study the effect of licensing restrictions and to assess the loss of value from using standard rather than multi-attribute auctions as is common in public procurement.

Patterns of use and motivations for consuming alcohol mixed with energy drinks.

Use of alcohol mixed with energy drinks (AmED) is an increasingly prevalent trend. However, recent research has suggested that AmED use may result in increased alcohol consumption and engagement in risk behavior postingestion. Although the majority of research has been focused on AmED use outcomes, there is a current paucity of data on the patterns of AmED use and motives for consumption. Four hundred and three participants from an Australian community sample (n = 244 women) ages 18-35 who had consumed alcohol mixed simultaneously with energy drinks (ED) in the preceding 6 months completed an online survey regarding use of EDs, alcohol, and AmED. Although AmED sessions occurred relatively infrequently compared to alcohol sessions, the alcohol and ED quantity consumed in AmED sessions was significantly greater than recommended intake. Reports of AmED use context indicated that participants typically consumed AmED while engaging in heavy drinking in public venues. However, the primary motives for AmED use related to the situational context of use, functional and hedonistic outcomes, as well as the pleasurable taste; few participants reported using AmED to increase alcohol intake, to mask intoxication, to hide alcohol's flavor, or to simulate an illicit drug "high." AmED users may be coingesting in a context and at a quantity that enhances the possibility of risky alcohol outcomes, despite predominantly consuming AmED for the taste and the functional and hedonistic outcomes. Strong endorsement of motives relating to ease of access and low cost price suggests that alcohol policy reform in relation to licensing restrictions may be necessary to minimize the risk of harm.