Risk-taking behaviors and other correlates of seat belt use among university students.

A cross-sectional study of 1,077 students enrolled in a large, comprehensive Midwestern university in the United States was conducted to elicit a better understanding of the correlates of seat belt use. Examined were seven risk-taking behaviors, health-promoting behavior, and age, sex, and race. Overall, five of the seven risk-taking behaviors, including cigarette smoking status, drinking status, amount of alcohol consumed, drug use, and drinking and driving were inversely correlated with the frequency of seat belt use (P = 0.00). Health-promoting behavior, as measured by a 48-item index, was positively associated with seat belt use (r = 0.21; P = 0.00). Females and whites were more likely to wear seat belts than males or nonwhites, respectively. There was no significant difference in seat belt use by age. Regression analysis on all 11 variables examined revealed that drug use, smoking status, and sex were significant predictors of seat belt use. Overall, the 11 variables explained 13.3% of the variance in seat belt use. Stepwise regression showed that slightly more than half of the explained variance could be attributed to amount of alcohol consumed and drug use (R2 = 0.071; P = 0.00).