INTOXICATION AND DRIVING

Analysis of Male College Students Drive More than Female College Students While Intoxicated



Analysis of Male College Students Drive More than Female College Students While Intoxicated

Introduction

Drunk-driving has been a major issue in contemporary issue. Many people drive their vehicle in drunken state. It is important to explore the impact of gender differences on their attitude towards driving their vehicle while in intoxication state. This research study focuses on identifying whether attitude towards driving in an alcoholic state differ across male and female; or both are oriented towards driving while having alcohol.

Research Questions

This research aims at exploring two fundamental questions related to intoxication of students and their driving status. Research question of this study is as follows.

Do male or female drive a car or other vehicle after they have been drinking alcohol

To what extent driving preferences and status differ on the basis of gender who drive a car or other vehicle when drunk.

Literature Review

Every year, thousands of people in the U.S. are killed as a result of drunk driving. According to the most recent figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 39% of all traffic-related deaths are related to alcohol (Friedman, 2008a). The issue is acknowledged by nearly everyone as of the utmost importance. However, the proper approach to the problem continues to be debated (Palk & Freeman, 2007). For decades, drunk driving has been a major cause of crashes, injuries and fatalities (Tuyl, 2006). But until fairly recently, the criminal justice system was not making much headway against drunk driving. During the 1980s, a grassroots anti-drunk driving effort evolved into a large-scale lobbying campaign, which led to unprecedented involvement by the federal government (Rebecca, 2002). That prompted a host of new state laws. All states made changes requiring people to be over 21 to drink and, more recently, making it illegal for people with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08% grams of alcohol per deciliter of blood or more to drive (Wolburg, 2005).

One of the more controversial anti-drunk driving measures is the use of drunk-driving checkpoints, also known as sobriety checkpoints. Police officers manning such checkpoints stop motorists randomly according to a particular pattern, such as every other car. The drivers are then checked for signs of intoxication (Fogarty, 2009). Critics say that drunk-driving checkpoints violate the Constitution's protections against being searched without reason, but the Supreme Court has upheld their use (Sharyn et al., 2011). Other controversial issues involve the ways that drivers are tested for intoxication, such as the technical aspects of breath tests and how blood tests are administered (Palk & Freeman, 2007). In addition, drunk-driving penalties have inspired debate, particularly the recent introduction of devices to prevent impaired drivers from driving. Critics also charge that many anti-drunk driving enforcement efforts neglect the rights of suspects and are ineffective (Fogarty, 2009; Wall, 2007).

Drunk-driving laws date back to the early decades of the 20th century. Back then, however, police often found it hard to confirm motorists' intoxication, and crashes caused by ...